SEWARD, Neb. – Brad Bennett made a mockery of Doane’s perimeter defense while leading a torching of the Tigers inside Friedrich Arena. Bennett knocked down six triples in the first half alone and the Concordia University Men’s Basketball team shot a white-hot 60.3 percent overall in what amounted to a 106-69 blowout on Wednesday (Jan. 10). The Bulldogs continued their rivalry dominance by taking down Doane for the seventh time in the past eight series matchups.
Head Coach Ben Limback’s squad improved to 5-1 at home this season while running the overall mark to 11-4 (6-3 GPAC).
“I felt like we came out with great intensity,” Limback said. “After that (Doane) injury, I thought we brought it again. Brad Bennett got into one of those heat checks and was outstanding. The ball was moving really well both halves, and we were finding guys. We had some turnovers in transition, but I liked how we ran and turned defense into offense.”
There have been Concordia-Doane meetings of the recent past that saw the Tigers dictate a slower tempo – not this time. The Bulldogs made it a track meet while spreading the floor and getting loose with 9-for-11 3-point shooting in the first half. Bennett had the crowd in awe when he drained five bombs in a span of less than four-and-a-half minutes. The final trey of the sequence pushed the Concordia lead to 48-31 late in the opening half. The advantage ballooned to a commanding 58-36 margin by the break.
The Bulldogs got just about whatever shots they wanted. While Bennett and Tyler Harre (3-for-5 from beyond the arc) launched from the perimeter, Noah Schutte attacked the basket and enjoyed an efficient 27-point evening that saw him make 11-of-14 shots from the floor. Schutte (1,487 career points) paced all scorers, Bennett posted 19 points and Jaxon Stueve (2-for-2 from long distance) collected 12 points and three steals. Several other Bulldogs neared double figures: Harre (nine), Tristan Smith (nine), Brooks Kissinger (eight) and Jaxon Weyand (eight). Twelve players on the victorious side managed to notch at least one basket.
Concordia’s 3-point pace slowed down (12-for-26 for the game) in the second half, but the contest had essentially been decided anyway. The Bulldogs hit the century mark for the fourth time this season and are averaging 96.2 points per game at home. They are leading the GPAC in scoring average. Said Limback, “When you score 100 points, that’s definitely a good team effort.”
Even with many new pieces in place this season, Concordia’s offense is a thing of beauty when it’s clicking like it was on Wednesday. Getting the ball to an open Bennett beyond the arc proved to be a winning strategy. Explained Bennett, “We just try to play our game all the time and try to run. We want to get in transition and get easy ones. Tonight, the shots fell, and we were running. Everything was going well for us.”
A scary moment occurred midway through the first half when a Doane player hit the deck in obvious pain. The game was delayed for several minutes as medical personnel tended to the student-athlete before taking him to a local hospital. The high scorer for the Tigers (7-10, 2-7 GPAC) wound up being guard Brady Timm, who notched 17 points on 7-for-16 shooting. Doane shot 40.9 percent (27-for-66) overall. Doane also got outrebounded significantly, 37-28.
It will be a clash between two high scoring teams on Saturday when Dordt (12-4, 5-3 GPAC) makes a visit to Friedrich Arena (3:45 p.m. CT tipoff). In Wednesday's action, the Defenders traveled to Jamestown and emerged with a 92-79 victory. In last season’s Concordia-Dordt matchups, the visiting team won in both cases. The Bulldogs have won three of the past four series meetings.