Feb. 10, 2015 - The Concordia-Chicago men's basketball team returned to Geiseman Gymnasium this evening after playing the last four games on the road. Tonight's opponent, the Spartans of Aurora University, came in looking to clinch at least a share of the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference regular-season championship. The Spartans managed that task but noth without a tenacious battle from the Cougars who held a late lead in the game. However, Aurora outscored CUC 12-2 over the final four minutes to take an 80-74 victory.
When the two teams met in Aurora back on Jan. 15, the Spartans rolled to a 39-point victory. But at the outset of tonight's game, the Cougars signaled that the visitors would not have an easy go this time around. Kylan Anderson (Chicago, IL/home schooled) and DeAires Blackwell (Chicago, IL/St. Rita) hit from behind the arc for the Cougars' first two buckets. Blackwell later scored on a putback, and the Cougars led 11-4 after just three minutes. The Spartans fought back into the game with a couple of scores from their bench before starters Tyler Hall and Kyle Pilmer got hot. Hall's three-point play gave Aurora the lead at 18-16, and the 6'8" Pilmer slammed home two scores, one on a putback to cap off a fast break.
Pilmer shot 7-7 from the field in the first half, and his seventh basket gave Aurora their largest lead of the half, 36-25 with 4:42 remaining. But the Cougars regrouped and made a run in the final minutes before the break. Anderson and Kyle Hoffman (Manitowoc, WI/Lincoln) started the 10-3 run with baskets, and the Cougars added three more points off an Aurora personal and technical foul. Gavin Walker's three interrupted the run briefly, but Tino Vazquez (Chicago, IL/Proviso East) hit on a three-point play to end the half, brining Concordia-Chicago within 39-35. In the early minutes of the second half, the Spartans shot their lead back up to 10 as Brandon Smith scored five of Aurora's first 10 points. However, CUC put the clamps on the visitors over the next five minutes and outscored Aurora 15-2. Vazquez converted another three-point play and then hit for three from the outside. Aurora scored to go back up by six, but the hosts kept charging back. Mike Walmer's (Orlando, FL/Orlando Christian) basket and Anderson's two free throws narrowed the gap before Brandon Stinson's (Schiller Park, IL/East Leyden) layup tied the game at the 13:50 mark. A minute later, Anderson's three from the right side gave CUC the lead at 54-51. Led by Hall, the Spartans came back to take a five-point lead, but the Cougars regrouped.
Adam Giger (Kissimmee, FL/Gateway), who had a 14-point effort off the bench this evening, scored eight in a span of 2:!5. His second three in that span shot CUC back into the lead at 65-64. Stinson and Anderson scored to keep the home team in the lead, and Anderson's three at the 4:14 mark had the Cougars poised to pull off the upset as they led 72-68.
Sadly for the home tean, Anderson's three was to be the Cougars' final field goal of the game. Hall's layup trimmed the CUC lead to two, and Smith's three-point play at 2:14 made the score AU 73, CUC 72.
Two free throws by Giger restored the lead to Concordia's side, but Smith struck with a second three-point play at the 1:46 mark for the final lead exchange of the night. The Cougars had two possessions to tie or take the lead, but the team's 12th and 13th turnovers of the game proved costly. The second turnover was quickly followed by a foul, and Smith followed with two more free throws as Aurora carried a four-point lead into the final minute. The Spartans' defense then rose to the challenge as they forced the Cougars into a low-percentage shot. Aurora captured the rebound, and Hall's breakaway in the final seconds sealed the six-point win for the visitors.
Anderson led four Cougar players in double figures with 17 points. He was followed by Giger with 14, Vazquez with 12 and Blackwell with 10. Concordia-Chicago shot 24-64 (38 precent) from the field, 9-34 from threes and 17-21 from the free throw line. Stinson tied his career-high with 17 rebounds (to go with eight points and six assists) as the Cougars pulled down 46 rebounds to the Spartans' 40.
Aurora shot 32-72 (44 percent) including 4-20 from threes and 12-20 from the free throw line. Pilmer led the Spartans with 20 points including 9-10 shooting from the field. Hall finished with 16 points and Smith with 15.
The Cougars will host Marian University on Saturday at 4:15. The final home game of the year will be Senior Day as the Cougars honor Kostas Doxakis (Thessaloniki, Greece), Shalav Hogue (Arad, Israel/Tel Aviv), Cole Reindl (Germantown, WI/H.S.), Charles Ruffing (Chilton, WI/DePere) and Stinson.
