The Concordia University, Nebraska men's basketball team struggled to find any offensive rhythm against Concordia-Portland in the opening round of the Pacific Northwest Lutheran Invitational Tournament being in Portland, Ore. The Cavaliers downed the Bulldogs 61-44. The Bulldogs (3-3) shot just 28 percent from the field in the first half against the Cavaliers on Friday evening.
Concordia-Portland opened up a 32-17 lead at halftime, converting on 50 percent of their shots. They also were a perfect 7-of-7 at the free throw line.
Despite trailing at half the Bulldogs came out with more intensity to open the second frame, going on a 9-2 run to cut the lead eight. Concordia-Portland answered with a run of their own, holding the Bulldogs scoreless for nearly four minutes.
The Bulldogs made one final push, closing the gap to nine with 9:56 remaining in the game. But the Cavaliers again countered, using a 12-2 run to put the game out of reach.
Freshman Casey Schrader led the Bulldogs with 13 points. The only other Bulldog in double digits was senior Benjamin Buhr with 12. Schrader also added four blocked shots and five rebounds. No other Bulldog had more than four points.
The Cavaliers were led by Desmond Meray who finished with 16 points. Matt Ochs finished with 12 points on 6-of-11 shooting. Cody Aker was two points from a double-double, finishing with eight points and a game-high 12 rebounds. As a team the Cavs shot just over 44 percent from the field.
The Bulldogs take on Augsburg tomorrow in the consolation game at 4 p.m. (PST).