HASTINGS, Neb. – Brooks Kissinger’s driving layup in the final seconds supplied the winning tallies as Concordia University, Nebraska Men’s Basketball escaped Lynn Farrell Arena with an 82-79 victory in Saturday (Feb. 21)’s regular season finale. The outcome remained in doubt until the final seconds despite the Bulldogs holding leads of 16 points in the first half and 15 points in the second half. Dane Jacobsen led all scorers with 25 points.
Head Coach Ben Limback’s squad needed the road victory in order to play inside Friedrich Arena at least one more time this season. Concordia (17-11, 11-9 GPAC) will be the No. 4 seed in the GPAC tournament.
“We needed this one,” Limback said. “I loved our start to the game. Second half, we got great momentum. They started to extend their defense, and we got a little tense, I feel like. Overall, we shot the ball well. We showed some toughness at the defensive end when we needed it. We knew No. 10 (DaRon Hall) was going to be good for them. We withstood some of that at the end. I’m so proud of the guys. You have to be able to win on the road no matter who it is. It’s a rivalry game too. Big-time finish by Brooks to close out the game.”
On its senior day while fighting for its postseason hopes, Hastings erased a five-point deficit in the final two minutes and pulled even (79-79) with Hall’s bucket with 32 seconds remaining. On the ensuing possession, Limback called timeout with 4.8 ticks left. Kissinger then received the in-bounds pass, beat Hall of the dribble and scored through contact. Kissinger finished off the 3-point play, and the Broncos failed to get a shot off, signaling the end of a white knuckler.
The Bulldogs managed to overcome Hall’s 22-point, seven-assist, seven-rebound performance and avenge the loss they were handed by Hastings at home on Jan. 7. Hall and company kept coming even after Concordia started out like gangbusters, draining seven of its first nine shots on its way to a 20-4 early lead. The Broncos closed within three at the half (38-35) and fought back from a 62-47 deficit midway through the second half.
Jacobsen and fellow sharpshooter Zac Kulus both went 4-for-5 from 3-point range on Saturday. Jacobsen added five assists to his game-high scoring total while Kulus collected 15 points and a team-high eight rebounds (The Bulldogs led the rebound category, 37-27). Kissinger was held to 14 points, but he was efficient in making 6-of-9 shots. He also grabbed five rebounds. Jaxon Stueve chipped in with 11 points and Jacob Duitsman dished out five assists while making his first career collegiate start. Concordia shot 56.9 percent (29-for-51) overall and went 11-for-22 (.500) from long range.
The result puts Hastings (8-20, 7-13 GPAC) at the No. 8 seed in the GPAC tournament. The Broncos shot 46.7 percent (28-for-60) from the floor. Maverick Binder, Ben Boudreau and Cameron Coraggio backed Hall with 15 points apiece.
The Bulldogs snapped a three-game skid and found some positivity heading into the postseason. Said Limback, “Dane was on a mission today. He’s unselfish almost to a fault sometimes, but today he was aggressive. When we play aggressive at both ends, we start to make more shots and get the stops we need, but Dane was really, really good today … Garrett (Grandgenett) did a lot for us defensively and got seven rebounds. We’re excited to have another chance at a home game. We have another shot at it.”
As the No. 4 seed for the GPAC tournament, Concordia will host fifth-seeded Dordt (16-12, 11-9 GPAC) in the quarterfinals on Wednesday night. Tipoff will be at 8 p.m. CT. The two sides split their regular season meetings.