Second Half Slips Away

MOORHEAD, Minn. (1/15/20)---  While the first was a cat and mouse game for Concordia against Gustavus, it was the Gusties who were able to steal the cheese in the second half and come away with a 78-58 win on a chilly Wednesday evening in Moorhead.

The Cobbers' second game with Gustavus on the season began with a defensive battle in the opening half. Concordia's defense held the Gusties to under 10 points in the first seven minutes of the game.

Junior Bryden Urie snapped a 3-minute drought for the Cobber offense when he nailed a jumper in the lane at the 16:46 mark of the opening half. Urie's jumper was one of a few the Cobbers were able to hit around the basket as Gustavus outscored Concordia 38-18 in points the paint. The Gusties also held a 42-29 advantage in rebounds.  

The Cobbers gained momentum midway through the first half after Gustavus turned the ball over amidst pressure from the Cobber defense. This prompted the Cobbers to a 6-0 run with back-to-back jump shots from Ty Setness and another bucket from Urie that put Concordia within two points at 11-9.  

Gustavus responded with a 10-0 run to go up 21-9 but then the Cobbers fought back. A Jackson Jangula jump shot and an Adam Daggett 3-pointer brought the Cobbers back within single digits of the Gusties.

The final five minutes of the first half of were a tug-of-war thanks to several Cobbers. Jangula nailed a shot from outside the arc to bring the Cobbers within three at the 4:47 mark of the half. Gustavus then countered with a jump shot and a 3-pointer to take a 28-20 lead.

Moments later Urie came off the bench and hit a shot from long distance at the 2:17 mark to bring the Cobbers within five points at 28-23. Following a Gustavus score, freshman Braeton Motschenbacher drove the lane and made the layup to push the score at half to 31-25 score at half in favor of the Gusties.

The Gusties started out strong in the second half and didn't look back. Gustavus went on a 10-5 run in the first five minutes of the period to push the lead to double digits and then came through with a14-6 stretch starting at the 7:33 mark to put the game out of reach. GAC ended up outscoring the Cobbers 47-33 in the final 20 minutes of play.

Concordia was led by a pair of strong performances from two junior players. Urie went 2-for-3 from outside the arc and finished with 13 points. He also added five rebounds. Setness alos put up 13 points as he went 6-for-14 from the floor.

Motschenbacher had a game-high eight rebounds to go along with eight points. Fellow freshman Josh Jeziorski gabbed seven boards in the game marking the second time in the last three contests he has come away with a touchdown-and-PAT worth of rebounds. Reiten and Jangula both added eight points.

INSIDE STAT INFO: Both Bryden Urie and Ty Setness extended their double-digit scoring streaks. Urie has now scored at least 10 points in three straight games while Setness has now gone back-to-back games with at least 10 points for the first time in his career.  

UP NEXT: The Cobbers look to rebound from their loss to Gustavus against Hamline on Saturday, Jan. 18 at 1 p.m when they take on Hamline in Memorial Auditorium. The game is also Alumni Day with a game of former Cobbers starting at 9 a.m.

CONCORDIA vs. GUSTAVUS HIGHLIGHTS