Men's Basketball advances to CIT Championship with victory over Cougars

Mequon, Wis. – Concordia Wisconsin's Men's Basketball team advanced to the CIT championship game with a 99-85 victory over Concordia Chicago. A balanced attack from the Falcons caught the Cougars off guard as they couldn't stop the dynamic CUW offense as three players scored 16 or more points.  

THE BASICS
Final Score: Concordia Wisconsin 99, Concordia Chicago 85
Location: R. John Buuck Field House (Mequon, Wis.)
Records:Concordia Wisconsin 11-9, 9-6 NACC; Concordia Chicago 2-16, 1-13 NACC

HOW IT HAPPENED
- Senior Josh Hau (Slinger, Wis.) led the way for the Falcons as he was hitting from everywhere on the court in the first half. Hau hit 4-of-6 from behind the arc in the first period and was lethal from the corner, as he helped spread the floor going 6-of-9 from deep for the entire game. Freshman Jordan Johnson (Cedarburg, Wis.) also was a threat offensively for the CUW, netting a total of 22 points and was crafty on his way to the rim finishing with acrobatic layups throughout the night. Junior Noah Gosse (Green Bay, Wis.) made a huge impact off the bench and was the third attacker for the Falcons, scoring 16 points by nailing two 3-pointers and causing havoc around the rim for the Cougars and compiling eight rebounds.
- In a game that decided who went on to play for a CIT Championship, it was Concordia Wisconsin's defense that came through to help with the victory. Concordia Chicago was held to 39.0 percent from the field and 27.3 percent from 3-point territory. The Falcons clamped down to aid scoring runs early in the second half to really open up the game as they, held CUC without a basket for two minutes starting at the 6:48 mark and not allowing a single point till the 3:52 mark when Kenta Jones made a 3-pointer to make the score 93-76 in favor of the Falcons.
- The first half started off great for the Cougars as they stayed within striking distance of the Falcons, as the score read 14-11 with the host out in front with 13:42 in the first half remaining. That's when CUW went on an 11-0 run to push the lead to 25-11 and really open up the first half. CUC did get within nine with 5:08 left in the first half when Jalen Meeks sunk two free throws to make the score 38-29 in favor of the Falcons.       

THE OPPOSITION
- Concordia Chicago relied on Jonathan Wilson who battled down low all night recording a team-high 17 points and 14 rebounds. Meeks netted 14 points and Mitch Pelissier chipped in 14 points and dished out a team-high five assists. Justin Schwarz also added 16 points and ripped down six rebounds. Henry Woo dropped 11 points off the bench to round out the scoring attack for the Cougars.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Johnson has been one of the main scoring options for the Falcons scoring double figures in the last five games. He is averaging 17.8 points on 49.8 percent from the field in that span.

NEXT ON THE SCHEDULE
- Concordia Wisconsin advanced to the CIT Championship against Concordia Ann Arbor with tip-off scheduled for 7:30 pm.