River Forest, Ill. — The Concordia University Chicago men's basketball team took the floor on Wednesday night for their first home postseason game in a decade. Behind a rowdy Geiseman Gymnasium, the Cougars rolled to a 94-81 victory over the Eagles of Edgewood College. With the win, the team advances to the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) Tournament semifinals on Friday night.
It was all Cougars out of the gate, as they scored the first 10 points of the night and forced an Edgewood timeout following a steal and score from senior Izak Ruddell (St. Joseph, Mich.).
They were lights out from the field in the early going, making their first six shots from beyond the arc. Ruddell accounted for two of these, while senior Jordan Matthews (Chicago, Ill.) knocked down three.
Matthews was excellent for CUC all night, leading the team with 21 points on 4-6 shooting from deep. He also pulled down a team-high 12 rebounds.
The Cougars lead grew as large as 24 in the first 10 minutes of action after Ruddell fought his way through traffic and contact to throw in a layup. Ruddell finished with 18 points and shot an unconscious 4-5 from three. He was 7-9 from the floor in total.
Everything went the Cougars' way in the first 10 minutes, with contributions from all over the floor. Sophomore Justin Greenlee planted the seeds for his big night, as he'd finish the game with a career-high 18 points.
Edgewood did chip into the lead as the half wore on, eventually pulling within 12 by half at 46-34.
Things were a lot more even in the second half. The CUC lead remained between 10-16 for the first 15 minutes. While Edgewood was doing everything they could to get back into the game, largely working through the NACC's leading scorer Jake Schroeckenthaler, the Cougars always had an answer on the other end.
They were doing as much work in the paint as they were from outside the arc. Seven different Cougars knocked down 3-pointers, including junior Tavarus Davis-Williams, just his second of the season (both coming against Edgewood).
Fifth-year Jalen Meeks (Aurora, Colo.) was massive off the bench in his first home playoff game, scoring nine points on 4-6 shooting. He added three boards and a pair of assists.
Also providing a major boost off the bench was junior Brent Hatten (Olney, Ill.), who scored 13 points on 5-8 shooting. The Cougars are now 7-1 in games where he scores in double-figures this season.
Edgewood did eventually cut the lead to under 10 with 5:17 to play, their first time within single-digits since the game was 13-5, but the Cougars quickly answered and never let it get any closer. They iced the game with free throws down the stretch and cruised comfortably to victory.
It's the first postseason win for the Cougars since they beat these same Edgewood Eagles back in 2010. The 94 points are the most the team has scored all season, also setting a new season-best with 35 made shots.
As a team, CUC shot 55.6 percent from the floor and 54.2 percent from beyond the arc.
The Cougars will be right back in Geiseman on Friday night at 7 p.m. when they welcome Marian University with a trip to the conference championship on the line. The Cougars and Sabres split the regular season series, with the home team winning both games.
Fans attending Friday night's game are encouraged to wear gold as the team has called for a "Gold Rush". If you are unable to attend Friday's game, coverage will be available on cucougars.com/coverage.
You can keep up with all things CUC Men's Basketball on cucougars.com as well as on Twitter @cuc_menhoops.
