 | 56 |
 | 54 |
The losing skid for Concordia University men's basketball continued Saturday as the Dordt College Defenders used a strong second half and a well-executed final shot to down the Bulldogs 56-54 at the Doghouse in Seward, Neb.
Concordia looked to have solved its recent scoring issues, jumping out to a 21-10 lead with just eight minutes remaining in the first half. Dordt was in no mood to fold, however, and was able to cut the Concordia lead to five points, 32-27, by halftime.
Dordt started the second half on fire with a 10-0 run and took a 37-32 lead after four minutes. The Defenders then held the Bulldogs back and pushed the lead to nine, 49-40, with just 6:57 remaining in the game. The Bulldogs answered with a 9-0 run of their own, bookended by baskets by Tyler Bredehoeft, to tie the game with just 3:37 remaining. The two teams traded baskets until Sam Huebner hit a pair of free throws with just over a minute remaining to give the Bulldogs a two-point lead. The Defenders answered quickly with a layup by Logan Kingma.
With under a minute remaining and the score tied 54-54, the Bulldogs looked to drain the clock down but were unable to hold on for a last second shot because of the differential in the shot clock. Bredehoeft attempted to drive with fewer than five seconds remaining on the shot clock, but was swarmed by Defenders, causing a turnover. After a timeout by Dordt, the Defenders had the ball with under ten seconds left. Logan Kingma curled off a screen and hit a jumper in the lane. The Defenders were up by two and, with only a second remaining on the clock, the Bulldogs' desperation attempt fell short.
Concordia was plagued by turnovers the entire afternoon, committing 22 while only forcing Dordt to commit 14. The Bulldogs shot well for the game, hitting on 21-of-46 field goal attempts (45.7 percent), but were unable to come up with a big shot when it was needed.
Dusan Veselinovic led the Bulldogs with 20 points while pulling down nine rebounds. Dustin Weber chipped in with 13 points. Logan Kingma led the Defenders with 16 points.
With the loss the Bulldogs fall to 18-9 overall and 10-6 in the GPAC while the Defenders move to 13-12 overall and 8-8 in the GPAC.
Next action for the Bulldogs comes Wednesday, Feb. 18, as Concordia travels to Mitchell, S.D. to take on the Dakota Wesleyan Tigers at the Corn Palace. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m.