Winning Streak Extended, Losing Streak Vanquished

ARDEN HILLS, Minn. (12/02/23)---Another game. Another win. Another dive into the record books for the Cobbers.

Concordia used a stifling half-court defense to limit Bethel to only 29.3% shooting from the field on their way to a 57-52 victory over the Royals.

The win snapped a 13-game losing streak to Bethel, which dated back to 2017. The win is also the sixth straight to start the year for the Cobbers, the second-longest in program history.

Concordia (6-0, 2-0 MIAC) made its hay against the Royals in the first half when they held BU to only 18 points and built an 11-point lead at the break. CC used a 15-4 run midway through the opening period to turn a 1-point deficit into a 10-point lead. The Cobbers took the lead at the 11:45 mark on a jumper by Noah Christensen and relinquished the advantage for only 1:40 of the remaining 29:15 in the game.

Bethel (1-4, 1-2 MIAC) grabbed its only lead of the second half when they went on a 9-0 run to take a 32-31 lead with 15:31 left in regulation. CC responded by scoring the following seven points with a 3-pointer from Rowan Nelson and field goals from Jackson Jangula and Peyton Belka.

The Royals would make one run at Concordia and get within one point, but a 3-ball from Matt Johnson gave the Cobbers a 4-point edge. CC would seal the game by making 7-of-9 free throws in the final 5 minutes of play.

Concordia finished the game by shooting 40.0% (20-for-50) from the floor.

Neither team was as warm as the weather from outside the arc. The Cobbers shot 26.3% (5-for-19) from distance, while the Royals made 20.8% (5-for-24) of their 3-point attempts, which included a 1-for-11 mark in the first half.

The Cobbers had three players score in double figures, but it was the all-around play of Jacob Cook that led CC. Cook scored 13 points, grabbed five rebounds, dished out three assists, blocked a pair of shots and had two steals just for good measure. Cook leads Concordia in rebounding with a 7.5 rpg average.   

Johnson led Concordia in scoring with 18 points. He was 8-for-8 from the free throw line and leads CC with a 91.2% (31-for-34) success rate from the foul stripe. That mark is the second highest in the MIAC. Johnson is also sixth in the league in scoring with an 18.2 ppg average.           

Nelson was 4-for-8 from the floor and added 12 points with five rebounds and an assist.

Jackson Loge led the Cobbers on the glass. He hauled down six boards and put up eight points.      
     
UP NEXT: Concordia will put its early-season win streak on the line when they play at St. Mary's on Monday, Dec. 4 at 5:30 p.m.