Second Half Is All Aces

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (12/28/22)---Led by junior transfer Matthew Johnson, Concordia scored 51 points in the second half and outlasted Ramapo (N.J.) 80-71 in the first of two games at the D3hoops.com Classic in Las Vegas.

Johnson knocked down 20 of his game-high 26 points in the final period as he helped the Cobbers win their third straight game and even their overall record at 5-5.

The 51 points scored in the second half is the most in any final period this season for the Cobbers. The top point total in a half for CC this year came in the opening period against Martin Luther when they put up 52 points.

Concordia used a 9-0 run midway through the final half to grab a 10-point lead and take command of the game. CC allowed the Roadrunners to get to within four points on a trio of occasions in the final 10-minutes of play, but each time Concordia responded with a basket on the next trip down the court to keep Ramapo from getting it down to a 1-possesion game.

The Cobbers made their hay at the free throw line. Concordia's ability to draw the foul helped CC go 20-for-27 (74.1%) from the foul stripe as compared to only 10-for-20 for the Roadrunners.

Both teams were fairly even in their shooting percentages. Concordia shot 43.3% (26-for-60) from the field and 32.0% (8-for-25) from outside the arc.

Ramapo (5-6) canned 45.8% (27-for-59) of their attempts from the floor and 41.2% (7-for-17) of their shots from distance.

The Cobbers held a 42-35 edge in rebounds, while the Roadrunners came away with a slight 38-36 edge in points in the paint.

Johnson was 11-for-13 at the free throw line and made a game-high three shots from outside the arc to get to his 26 points.

Johnson has now posted at least 25 points in back-to-back games and has three 25-point-plus contests on the year. He leads the team with a 20.9 points per game average. That mark is third best in the MIAC.

Johnson was one of four Cobbers to score in double digits.

Dylan Inniger made a shot in the final seconds of the first half to give Concordia a 29-28 lead at the break. He finished the first 20-minutes of play with a team-high 13 points on his way to scoring a season-high 18 for the entire game. Inniger also posted a team-high eight boards.

Like Inniger, Alex Huber also hauled down eight rebounds. He went 5-for-10 from the floor and added 11 points.

Rowan Nelson posted his ninth straight double-digit scoring game. He posted 13 points and had three boards and three assists.

Jackson Jangula matched his season high in assists as he dished out a game-high seven helprs.

UP NEXT: Concordia will finish off their trip to Vegas when they play Wis.-Platteville on Thursday, Dec. 29 at 10 p.m. (cst). The Pioneers are 6-5 on the year.