RIVER FOREST, ILL. — In their last game of the 2023 calendar year, the Concordia University Chicago (CUC) men's basketball team (5-6, 2-4) welcomed the North Central College Cardinals (3-9, 2-2) to Geiseman Gymnasium for some non-conference action on Friday. Despite trailing by 14 points at half, CUC clawed their way back into the game during the second half, and a last second three from Brent Hatten (Olney, Ill.) gave the Cougars a dramatic 66-63 win. 

-Inside the Box Score

• Jacob Collicott (Lafayette, Ind.) led the Cougars in scoring with 11 points. His nine rebounds was also a team-high. 

• Jordan Matthews (Chicago, Ill.) was the only other CUC player with double-digit points with his 10. 

• William Bishop-Green (Chicago, Ill.) dished out two assists, which was tied with Collicott and a Cardinal for most in the match. 

-How It Happened

First Half

The Cougars jumped out to an early lead when a missed Hatten three-ball landed right in the hands of Emanuel Wilson (Wheaton, Ill.), who put the rebound through the hoop for a 2-0 lead. North Central did not stay down for long though, scoring the next nine points to go up 9-2 with 16:04 to go in the half. 

Bishop-Green did his part in getting CUC right back in the game, scoring four of the game's next six points to make it 12-6, still in favor of North Central. The Cardinals then locked down on defense, holding Concordia to zero field goals for almost eight minutes. During that period, North Central outscored the Cougar 11-5 to take a 23-11 advantage with under seven minutes to play in half one. 

Justin Greenlee (Brown Deer, Wis.) broke the field goal drought with his turnaround jumper at the 6:34 mark. This kicked off a 7-0 run for Concordia, who closed the deficit to 23-18. North Central's Ken Thomas made a pair of free throws to increase their lead back to seven, but Joel Watts (Homewood, Ill.) responded with his own two-for-two trip to the line to make it 25-20 with 3:38 left before halftime.

But over the last 2:44 of the first half, everything came up North Central. Ethan Helwig scored back-to-back three-pointers and a free throw, and Brian Johnson converted on two last second free throws to give the Cardinals a 14-point lead, 34-20, heading into the locker rooms.  

Second Half

Both teams traded successful trips to the charity strip within the first 30 seconds of the second half, and then Watts scored four straight to pull CUC within 10, 36-26.

An eventual Elijah White (Sheboygan, Wis.) three cut the deficit to single digits, but the sophomore drawed a technical on the same play and the two ensuing North Central free throws made it an 11 point lead. Following a near two minute break without any points being scored, Concordia used a 9-2 run to pull within four, 44-40. 

A Cardinal bucket jumped the lead back up to six, but a five point spree from the Cougars made it a one-point game. Two North Central free throws made it a three point deficit, but Darrian Williams (Garland, Texas) converted on a three-pointer to create a whole new ballgame. A minute and a half later, with the game now tied 50-50, Williams made a driving layup to give Concordia their first lead since the opening minute of the game. 

With under seven minutes remaining in regulation, the Cougars did everything they could to pull away from the Cardinals, never falling behind by more than five points. That is until the 2:34 mark, when a Matthews jumper put his squad up six, 63-57. 

North Central refused to lie down however, using a layup and four free throws to quickly make up those six points and tie the game 63-63 with 36 seconds left on the clock. Following a timeout, the Cougars entrusted Hatton to take the final shot of the game. With just a few seconds left in the game, Hatten drained an off-balance three with a hand in his face to give the Cougars a 66-63 lead. A desperation three from North Central clunked off the backboard, securing the comeback win for Concordia. 

-Up Next

Men's basketball will not be back in action until 2024, when they resume conference play by hosting Lakeland University on Jan. 3. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m., and coverage can be found at cucougars.com.