Jan. 14, 2014 - A solid second-half comeback put the Concordia Cougars in position to pull off a road win this evening against the Dominican Stars. However, the Cougars were unable to score in the final two minutes, and the Stars scored the game's final four points to squeeze out a 64-62 victory.
The Cougars and Stars traded baskets in the early going with Justin Saar's (Tracy, CA/Merrill F. West) three giving Concordia a 13-12 lead. However, a combination of missed shots and turnovers led to a dry spell of nearly five minutes for the Cougars. Dominican capitalized by going on a 15-point run capped off by Ryan Risley's three.
A basket by Jared Gosse (Green Bay, WI/NEW Lutheran) broke the Stars' string of points, but the Cougars fell behind by 16 points before making a recovery late in the half. Led by Gosse's three-point play and a last-second layup by Mike Walmer (Orlando, FL/Orlando Christian), the Cougars knocked down their deficit to just six points at 35-29.
In the early minutes of the second half, Dominican stretched its lead back out to nine points. However, Concordia turned up the intensity which resulted in the hosts getting into early foul trouble. Concordia got into the bonus at the 13:23 mark of the half, and Gosse hit both free throws to tie the game. Moments later, Walmer knocked down a pair to complete an 11-0 run and give Concordia a 42-40 lead.
The Cougars held the lead for the next several minutes, but the Stars refused to go away. Eventually, the Stars went on a mini-run and took a 56-51 lead with 5:47 remaining. But the Cougars answered with an 8-2 run capped by Walmer's driving layup for a 59-58 edge.
Logan Harris scored to return the lead to the Stars but, with 2:14 left, it appeared as if the Cougars would make the big play of the game. Nat Pearson (Palatine, IL/H.S.) hit the first of two free throws to tie the score. Pearson missed the second, but Marcus Elston (Chicago, IL/Benito Juarez) snared the rebound and laid it in for a 62-60 lead.
Unfortunately, the Cougars would not score again. Josh Mayberry's three at 1:46 provided the final lead change of the night. Harris' free throw made it a two-point game, but Concordia rebounded the second free throw and set up for a final chance to tie or win. Unfortunately, Walmer's layup came off the rim. Elston rebounded but missed a short jumper under heavy pressure, and time expired before CUC could track down the rebound.
Concordia owned a huge advantage on the glass, 53 to 39 as Stinson captured a career-high 17 rebounds and Elston and Gosse 10 each. However, the Cougars committed 17 turnovers to the Stars' 12 and shot just 34 percent from the field. Walmer led CUC scorers with 19 points, followed by Elston's 12 and Stinson's 12.
The Cougars (5-9, 2-8 NACC) return home to host Aurora University on Thursday night.
