End-Of-1st-Half Stretch Proves Costly in MIAC Opener

DULUTH, Minn. (11/19/22)---Concordia outscored St. Scholastica 33-27 in the second half of its conference opener in Duluth, unfortunately for the Cobbers a 23-7 run by the Saints at the end of the first half proved to be the deciding factor in Scholastica's 77-67 win.

The first 13 minutes of the opening period of play went back-and-forth with six lead changes and six tie scores. Both teams had a 5-point lead in the opening stretch of the first half. The Saints went up 14-9 at the 14:30 mark, and then the Cobbers returned the favor when senior Jackson Jangula knocked down a 3-pointer to give CC a 22-17 lead with 10:09 left in the first frame.

St. Scholastica (2-1, 1-0 MIAC) then went on a 7-2 run to tie the game at 24-24. The teams then traded 3-point possession to push the score line to 27-27 with 7:19 to play, which set up the Saint's momentum-change streak.

Concordia (0-3, 0-1 MIAC) trailed 50-34 at the break, and cut the deficit to single digits with another Jangula long ball at the 7:04 mark. The Cobbers then whittled the margin to only six points with 1:49 to play, but then a pair of missed 3-pointers by CC down the stretch sealed their fate.        

Jangula had a monster game and finished with 24 points. That total is two shy of his career mark which he also posted against St. Scholastica in the fourth game of his freshman season.

Jangula went 9-for-14 from the field and 5-for-8 from outside the arc. He added six assists, two assists and two steals.

Rowan Nelson and Alex Huber were the only two Cobber players with more than five points in the game. Nelson was 7-for-15 from the field and had 20 points. It's the sixth 20-point game of his career. Nelson also came away with six rebounds.

Huber was 6-for-12 from the floor and had 13 points.

STAT STORY: Concordia was 7-for-31 (22.5%) from 3-point range in the conference opener. The 31 long-ball attempts are the most since the season opener of the 2016-17 season when they hoisted 35 3-balls in a 71-70 loss at Minn.-Morris.
  
UP NEXT: Concordia returns home to start a 2-game homestand when they host St. Olaf on Tuesday, Nov. 22 at 5:15 p.m.