MIAC Regular-Season Race Gets Interesting

ST. JOSEPH, Minn. (2/06/13)—The MIAC regular-season title race just got a little more exciting. Concordia gave up 40 points in the second half against second-place St. Ben's and lost 69-63. The two teams are now tied atop the league standings with three games left in the regular season.

The Cobbers struggled to contain the Blazers in the second half and lost for the first time in nine games. The 40 points allowed in the second period marks only the fourth time all season that CC has allowed 40 or more points in a single. St. Ben's shot 52.2% from the floor and 50.0% from behind the arc in the final period of play. The other huge factor was the Blazers' ability to knock down their free throw attempts. CSB made nine of their final 10 foul shots and was able to hang on down the stretch.

Concordia sees their eight-game winning streak come to an end and is now 17-5 in all games and 16-3 in conference play. In addition to being tied atop the conference standings, the Cobbers are also the top regionally-ranked team in the MIAC. CC is ranked No.6 in the very first NCAA West Region rankings which came out on Wednesday.  St. Ben's wins for the 10^th straight game and is now 18-4 in all games and 16-3 in the MIAC. The Blazers last loss came at the hands of the Cobbers on Jan. 9.

The Cobbers held a 33-29 lead at the halftime break but then allowed St. Ben's to go on a 16-9 run to start the second half. The Blazers went 6-for-10 from the floor during that stretch while CC struggled by going 2-for-10 from the field and coughing up the ball three times. That early second-half run set the stage for the remainder of the game as CC would never lead after the 11:29 mark.

Concordia shot 35.0% (21-for-60) from the field for the game and 31.8% (7-for-22) from 3-point range. It is only the fourth time all year that CC has shot 35.0% or worse from the floor and they are now 1-3 in those games.

The Cobbers had four of their five starting players score in double figures. Senior guard Emily Thesing, the reigning MIAC Player of the Week, had a game-high 21 points.  She was 7-for-18 from the floor and 5-for-9 from 3-point range. Junior center Alexandra Lippert came away with her second double-double in the last three games. She had 10 points and 10 rebounds and added two steals. Alley Fisher came away with 13 points and was a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line. She is currently second in the MIAC in free throw percentage (83.3%). Tricia Sorensen had a 10-point, 5-rebound game.

Concordia will look to start another winning streak when they play their final regular-season road game on Saturday, Feb. 9 at 1 p.m. at Hamline.