SEWARD, Neb. – After taking the middle of this week off from game action, the 25th-ranked Concordia University Men’s Basketball team will be back in action on Saturday with a major road test at No. 12 Jamestown. Both teams remain hopeful of capturing the GPAC regular season title in what remains a wide-open race. Head Coach Ben Limback’s squad sits a half-game behind Briar Cliff at the top of the league standings. The Bulldogs carry a GPAC record of 8-3 (15-4 overall) into the weekend.
Game Info
Saturday, Jan. 15 at No. 11 Jamestown (16-4, 6-4 GPAC), 3:45 p.m.
--Live Webcast | Live Stats
By the numbers
· Concordia held onto a spot in the NAIA coaches’ top 25 poll, landing at No. 25 in the rankings released on Wednesday. The Bulldogs and Jimmies are the lone GPAC teams to appear inside the top 25. Northwestern also received votes. Concordia went 4-2 since it cracked the top 25 and appeared at No. 23 in the poll unveiled on Dec. 15. The overtime loss to Mount Marty last week likely resulted in the Bulldogs moving back two spots. Prior to this season, Concordia had not broken into the top 25 since the 2010-11 season.
· While the Bulldogs were idle on Wednesday, it was a wild night within the GPAC as four of the five games were decided by three points or less, including two contests that went to overtime. After placing seventh in the GPAC last season, Briar Cliff continues to be one of the surprises of the conference. The Chargers won at Jamestown, 81-79, to improve to 8-2 within the league. First-place Briar Cliff is followed in the GPAC standings by Concordia (8-3), Morningside (7-3), Northwestern (7-3) and Jamestown (6-4). Morningside won the 2020-21 regular season title with a 16-5 conference mark.
· After the disappointing loss at Mount Marty last week, the Bulldogs rebounded with an 88-71 win over Dakota Wesleyan. Carter Kent enjoyed another monster week that saw him total 54 points, 10 assists, eight rebounds and three blocked shots. He also made 17-of-31 shots from the floor (6-for-11 from 3-point range) and 14-of-15 attempts from the foul line. Kent scored 19 in the win over DWU and was joined by three teammates in double figures: Gage Smith (16), Noah Schutte (15) and AJ Watson (10). Concordia has moved its home win streak to 13 and is 25-1 in its last 26 homes games.
· In terms of scoring differential in league games, the Bulldogs have been the most impressive team in the GPAC. Through 11 GPAC contests, Concordia is averaging 78.1 points per game offensively and allowing 70.2 points. That equates to a per game scoring margin of plus-7.9, which is No. 1 in conference play among GPAC teams. The Bulldogs have won each of their six home games by margins of 10 points or more. Currently, Concordia sports conference rankings of third in scoring offense (79.7) and sixth in scoring defense (70.1) when factoring in all games played this season.
· Kent has bumped his career point total to 1,471, placing him 10th on the program’s all-time list. Limback has coached three of the school’s top 10 scorers, including Chandler Folkerts (third with 1,963) and Tanner Shuck (eighth with 1,579). Considering his scoring average of 17.2 points per game, Kent has a shot to move into the top five on the list. He’s also on the verge of becoming the ninth player in school history to reach at least 1,500 points. A Second Team All-GPAC honoree in each of the past two seasons, Kent appears poised to move to the first team.
· Kent paces the team in scoring (17.2) and assists (3.5) and is tied for the lead in steals (1.3). Meanwhile, Gage Smith tops the squad in rebounds per game (7.3). An efficient offensive team, the Bulldogs boast four starters with field goal percentages greater than 46: Noah Schutte (.556), Justin Wiersema (.517), Smith (.514) and Kent (.461). As a team, Concordia is shooting 48.7 percent from the floor, 33.7 percent from 3-point range and 76.5 percent from the free throw line. Opponents are shooting 43.1 percent from the floor, 33.6 percent from beyond the arc and 71.3 percent from the foul line.
The opponent
Jamestown remains the highest ranked team in the GPAC following a run to the national quarterfinals last season. Head Coach Danny Neville’s squad rolls out an imposing frontcourt led by reigning GPAC Player of the Year Mason Walters, who is averaging 23.4 points and 11.7 rebounds per game. The Jimmies can also shoot it from the perimeter, currently knocking down treys at a 38.9 percent clip. In this season’s first meeting, Concordia managed to pull away from Jamestown for a 92-76 win despite surrendering 20 offensive rebounds to the Jimmies. Jamestown will be focused on getting back on the right track after dropping two of its last three outings.
Next week
Two more significant challenges await next week when the Bulldogs will host Morningside on Jan. 19 before traveling to play at Northwestern on Jan. 22. By the end of next week, there could be more clarity in terms of the race for the GPAC regular season title.