Box Score River Forest, Ill. — Concordia Chicago men's basketball (2-9) held on down the stretch to win a nail-biter over the Aurora Spartans (4-3) by a final score of 83-81, earning them a split of the weekend series.
The Cougars went into halftime trailing by two points, setting up perhaps their most important half of the season. The team was up to the challenge, as they opened the second half on an 8-0 run to take their largest lead of the night. The Spartans stayed in the battle, even taking back the lead at times, but the Cougars never wavered. Clutch free throw shooting down the stretch sealed CUC's first conference win in over a year.
Similar to Friday's game, Concordia dominated the paint, scoring 46 points to Aurora's 28. They also held a 14-9 advantage on the offensive boards, which earned them seven more second chance points than the Spartans. The Cougars were the more opportunistic team all night, outscoring Aurora 24-13 off of turnovers, despite both teams committing the same amount.
William Bishop-Green (Chicago, Ill.) was an x-factor off the bench for the Cougars. The freshman scored nine points on 4-5 shooting and provided two highlight reel plays in the second half with a breakaway dunk and a 360 degree layup that resulted in a three-point play. He was also a pest on the defensive end, forcing four of the team's eight steals.
Junior Izak Ruddell (Saint Joseph, Mich.) led all scorers on the night with 22. The junior was active on the boards, grabbing seven rebounds, including three on the offensive end. Sophomore Brent Hatten (Onley, Ill.) recorded his second double-double in as many nights, with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Despite a 4-11 night from the floor, junior Jordan Matthews (Chicago, Ill.) still played a major role in the offense, dishing out a team-high five assists.
The Cougars will be back in action on Wednesday night when they welcome Loras College to Geiseman for a non-conference contest. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. and a stream to the game will be available on the
CUC Athletic's Youtube channel.
