River Forest, Ill. - To start off the new year, the Concordia University Chicago (CUC) men's basketball team was back on their home court to face off against the Warriors of Wisconsin Lutheran College. After a major battle, the Cougars were able to take the game with a final score of 85-84.
Inside the Box Score:
- Darrian Williams (Garland, Texas) ended tonight's game with 20 points, three rebounds and one steal, landing a total of four 3-pointers.
- Sebastian Hill (Decatur, Ill.) walked away with a career-high 16 points and three rebounds, also landing four 3-pointers.
- Aaron Brown (Joliet, Ill.) followed up with 15 points and nine rebounds.
- Honore Yangoua (Williamstown, Ky.) led in rebounds with 10 rebounds.
Here's What Happened
First Half
The Warriors began the scoring early on with some layups. Brown had put the Cougars on the board with a layup, 6-2. Williams was able to get a turnaround jumper in, helping the Cougars slowly lessen the point gap. The Warriors continued to put points up, pushing the Cougars further into a deficit.
Andreas Louloudis (Thessaloniki, Greece) made his appearance and quickly put the Cougars on the Warriors' tail with a 3-pointer and a jumper, followed up with a beautiful 3-point jumper from
AJ Willard (Germantown, Wis.), 16-14. The Warriors fought back, putting up eight points within a minute. The Warriors remained on top, keeping up with their 19-point lead. The Cougars finally managed to break 20 with free throws from
Vic Garrett (Chicago, Ill.).
Jacob Robinson (Saint Louis, Mo.) was able to come in with a driving layup, fighting hard to give the Cougars a chance, along with Brown and his layup. Louloudis was able to get in another three, closing the deficit to 15 points. The Warriors went into halftime with a steep lead, 48-29.
Second Half
The Warriors began the scoring for the half, sinking a 3-pointer. Williams retaliated by getting a three up of his own; a Warrior and Williams continued to get in more 3-point jumpers, firing up both teams.
Tallis Lowery (Fairview Heights, Ill.) drove in with a layup, but the Warriors managed to break 60 against the Cougars. Brown helped break 40 with a tip-in layup; he followed up with a retaliatory 3-pointer against a Warrior. Williams was on fire as he landed his third three of the night. Robinson came in with another layup, the Cougars keeping up the fight. Yangoua got himself into the mix with a layup, followed by a nice 3-pointer from Hill, 71-57. Williams pulled out another big-time three, tying up with Brown at 14 points each. Hill got out another three, putting the Cougars within 10. Layups were made by Hill and Williams, the Cougars battling for the top spot. Points from
Matthew Gurthie (Carlyle, Ill.) and Hill got the Cougars closer, 81-77.
Ryker Johnson (Fond du Lac, Wis.) helped get the Cougars within two with a layup on the fast break. With 1:26 remaining, Williams tied the teams up. The Cougars miraculously took the lead and beat their opponents with a final score of 85-84.
What's Next
The team will gather once more at the Geiseman Gymnasium this coming Wednesday, January 7th, to battle against Rockford University. The game will take place at 7:00 pm. Coverage for all things CUC men's basketball can be found at
cucougars.com/coverage.
