Cougar Men Make Second-Half Splash Versus Lakers
Nov. 22, 2014 - Following a disappointing four-point loss on Wednesday night, the Concordia-Chicago men's basketball team responded this afternoon with what head coach Tyler Jones called "a complete game." A solid defensive effort and a 14-4 run in the second half added up to a 69-60 win over visiting Roosevelt University as the Cougars improved to 2-1 on the season.
Roosevelt entered the game with a 4-1 record, led by the offense of guards Tyree York and Joe Harks. However, the Cougars held the scoring tandem to about half of their normal output, and the Lakers shot just 33 percent (20-60) as a team. "I am very proud of the way our guys established the defense today," said Jones. "We had a lot of guys playing both ends of the floor." Jones especially cited 6'2" center DeAires Blackwell (Chicago, IL/St. Rita) as a vital component in today's win. Blackwell pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds, and his work on the defensive end helped to offset the play of Roosevelt's Jeremiah Jackson who tallied 24 points and 10 rebounds. The Cougars led for much of the game, beginning with Kylan Anderson's (Chicago, IL/home schooled) three-pointer - CUC's only three of the game - that gave the home team a 4-2 edge. Anderson, who led the Cougars with 23 points, was the go-to man early, and his jumper midway through the half gave CUC its largest first-half lead at 16-10. But the Lakers stayed close behind the play of Jackson who shot 5-5 and had 13 first-half points. Roosevelt tied the score 26-26 in the final minute of the half, but a pair of free throws by Patrick Phillip (Kissimmee, FL/Osceola) enabled the home team to take a two-point lead into the break. The two teams continued the back-and-forth battle in the second half, but it was the entrance of Kostas Doxakis (Thessaloniki, Greece) into the game that began to tip the scales permanently in CUC's favor. Doxakis converted a three-point play and later added consecutive baskets to give Concordia-Chicago a 51-45 lead. "I can't say enough about the spark that Kostas gave us today," said Jones. "Just like Jacob Oakley (Sun Prairie, WI/H.S.) in last Saturday's win against Knox College, we had a senior that was ready when they were called upon. These are great examples for our younger players to see, because one day they'll be in that position when they need to answer the bell in a crucial situation." Anderson then heated up again down the stretch. His jumper at the 3:41 mark gave the Cougars their first double-digit lead of the day at 57-47. Roosevelt scored the next four points, but Anderson came back with a jumper to make it 59-51 with just over two minutes left. The Cougars then held off the Lakers by scoring their final 10 points of the game at the charity stripe. Concordia-Chicago's free throw shooting was exceptional today as they cashed in 22 of their 26 attempts.
Anderson's 23-point effort was followed by Brandon Stinson (Scholler Park, IL/East Leyden) with 16 points, six rebounds and three steals. Mike Walmer (Orlando, FL/Orlando Christian) added 10 points and six rebounds. "I was really happy with this effort today, especially after I felt that we missed a great opportunity in our last game," said Jones. "We defended well, and our shot selection inside the three-point arc was very good. Roosevelt is a tough team, a very athletic team, and I'm very pleased with how we responded to the challenge. This is a great win for us as we now get ready for the start of our conference season."
The Cougars will begin Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference play next Saturday, Nov. 29 when they host Lakeland College. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:15 following the women's contest.
