Feb. 9, 2016 -  The Concordia-Chicago Cougars found themselves with an enormous challenge this evening. They travelled to Lisle to take on a Benedictine University team ranked second in NCAA Division III and perfect in their first 22 games. The Cougars showed much determination, but the Eagles had too many weapons to overcome as they went to 23-0 with a 111-59 victory.

The Eagles scored on their first four trips down the floor for a 10-2 lead. Forward Adam Reynolds was the go-to man early for the home team, hitting three of his first four shots including a three-pointer. Justin Mack (Bellwood, IL/Walther Lutheran) scored early, but his field goal was the only one of the first 11 CUC shots to go down. 

About the midway point of the half, the Cougars' offense warmed up from long range. Rodney Castor (Fort Myers, FL/H.S.), fresh off the bench, hit consecutive threes from the right wing. Justin Saar (Tracy, CA/Merrill F. West) hit a three on the next trip down as the Cougars came within 26-11. However, the Eagles remained consistent in attacking the interior of the Cougars' defense. They finished the first half with 32 points in the paint and an overall shooting percentage of 54 percent as they went to the locker room with a 54-30 lead. 

Castor finished the first half with 12 points on the strength of three shots from downtown, and DeAires Blackwell (Chicago, IL/St. Rita) made three of his four shots from the field and scored eight points total. However, the Cougars managed just 11 of 31 shots overall (4-11 from three-point range). Rebounds also wnt to the home team by a 30-13 margin, led by 6'9" center Lucas Johnson's eight.

As the second half started, it was Blackwell driving the offense. He powered his way inside for a 12-point half, finishing with a new career-high of 20 points. However, the EAgles avoided any prolonged scoring slumps, shooting 63 percent (21-33) for the half. The large margin allowed both coaches to utilize their entire active rosters for the final part of the game.