SEWARD, Neb. – Kids these days might say that the Concordia-Morningside matchups this season have produced absolute cinema. After falling in a shootout at Morningside a month ago, the Bulldogs experienced extreme heartache on Saturday (Feb. 7), surrendering a seven-point lead in the first overtime before stumbling in a double OT classic, 123-115, inside Friedrich Arena. Concordia fell despite a triple-double from star junior Brooks Kissinger and despite 20 made 3-point field goals.
The loss stings in that Head Coach Ben Limback’s squad let a potential signature win get away from it. The Bulldogs stand at 16-9 overall (10-7 GPAC) with three games remaining in the regular season.
“That was a fun game for everybody in the stands – other than the outcome,” Limback said. “We had two chances to put them away – regulation and the first overtime. Against good teams, you have to find a way to close those outs. We had some turnovers, some missed free throws and some bad defensive plays. That’s the difference. We had chances.”
It’ll go down as a game of ‘what if’ for Concordia, which led by scores of 90-84 in the final two minutes of regulation and 102-95 in the closing minute of the first overtime. A Zac Kulus trey at the 1:10 mark appeared to be the dagger. But three Bulldog turnovers and a missed front end of a one-and-one led to the home team’s undoing. Kaden Van Regenmorter drew a foul from beyond the arc and made all three foul shots to pull Morningside even, 102-102, necessitating another five minutes.
An 11-3 Mustang run in double overtime sank Concordia’s hopes of knocking of the GPAC’s first-place team. Alex Wilcoxson came up clutch with 10 of his team-high 28 points coming in overtime No. 2. The Mustangs were able to escape Seward with the win thanks in large part to 58.9 percent (43-for-73) shooting from the field and 25-for-29 (.862) foul shooting. Caleb Dreckman (25) and Fitzy Grant (23) also reached 20 points for the villains from Sioux City.
Kissinger put in another workhorse effort while playing 43 minutes. He totaled 33 points (career high) to go with 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Kissinger and fellow Ashland-Greenwood High School alum Dane Jacobsen (25 points, six rebounds and five assists) dazzled with their playmaking ability. Jacobsen went 7-for-13 from 3-poin range. Off the bench, Tate Odvody drained 4-of-5 3-point attempts and posted 17 points while facing off with his brother, Tyson Odvody of Morningside. Other double-figure scorers were Jacob Duitsman (11) and Hayden Frank (10).
On the down side, Concordia got only 15 minutes from Jaxon Stueve, who played through pain after missing a portion of the win at Doane. Another key contributor on Saturday was Kulus, who posted nine points, seven assists and three steals. Rebounds (36-33 Morningside) and turnovers (14-16 Morningside) were largely even.
The Bulldogs went a sizzling 20-for-41 (.488) from beyond the arc on a night when they honored the program’s all-time All-Americans. Concordia had hoped to treat them to a victory. Instead, the GPAC champion Mustangs (19-5, 16-1 GPAC) found another way to win.
Said Limback, “I’m proud of our guys overall. There’s some fight in there, but we needed better execution … There’s a lot to learn any time you get in these close games. There are learning opportunities. We have a week of prep to get ready for Briar Cliff. We’ve got to get Stueve healthy, but there’s a lot of stuff we can take away from this. I think this team is built for a run.”
Another break in the schedule arrives as the Bulldogs take this coming Wednesday off from game action. Concordia will be headed to Briar Cliff (12-12, 9-8 GPAC) for a 3:45 p.m. CT tipoff next Saturday. The Bulldogs took this season’s first matchup from the Chargers, 72-64, on Jan. 10.