The Spartans stun the Falcons in conference battle

MEQUON, Wis. – Concordia Wisconsin battled the Aurora Spartans in an important mid-season Northern Athletic Colligate Conference tilt. The Falcons fell victim to a late second half run that catapulted Aurora to an 81-76 victory.   

THE BASICS
Final Score: Aurora 81, Concordia Wisconsin 76
Location: R. John Buuck Field House (Mequon, Wis.)
Records: Aurora 7-8 (5-5 NACC); Concordia Wisconsin 9-5 (9-2 NACC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Falcons were down 59-58 with 7:41 remaining in the contest and were looking to take the lead on their ensuing possession. That was until the Spartans went on a huge scoring run to give them just enough space to put away the NACC leaders. Aurora would extend the lead to 69-60 after big buckets from Jesse Young and Garrett Hoffman. Young was around the bucket all night but recorded five of the 10 points scored in the 10-2 scoring run. Hoffman hit one of his five threes within the four-minute span to help keep Concordia Wisconsin at arm's length for the rest of the contest.
- CUW would pull back within three points on several occasions, but the Spartans would always have an answer to make sure that the Falcons never had a chance to retake the lead. Bailey Vance was instrumental in closing the game for the Spartans, as he went 3-4 in the final two minutes from the free throw line to help seal up the victory.
- The first half was exactly what Concordia Wisconsin wanted, as they held a 35-29 lead and shot 50 percent from the field in the opening 20 minutes. One area the Falcons did struggle in was from behind the arc, as they went 3-of-13 in the first half which didn't allow them to create more separation going into the break. The host did bounce back nicely in the second half, as they went 6-of-13 in the final 20 minutes of the contest. The Falcons scored 30 points in the paint and had 14 assists on the night. Senior Josh Hau (Slinger, Wis.) recorded 21 points and had six rebounds, while sophomore Jordan Johnson (Cedarburg, Wis.) and senior Andrew Fratzke (Winona, Minn.) both tied for a team-high in rebounds with seven.
- Aurora had five players in double figures, as Young had 18 points, while Hoffman had 15 points and was 5-of-8 from deep in the second half. The Spartans also had 17 second chance points and 25 points off turnovers to help them to victory.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Fratzke needs seven offensive rebounds to become the program leader in career offensive rebounds. His highest total in a single game this year is five against Marian back on the fifth of this month.

UP NEXT
- Concordia Wisconsin will be back in action when they travel to Lakeland on Tuesday, with tipoff scheduled for 7:00 pm.