Men's Basketball Breaks Marian in Biggest Comeback in Program History

MEQUON, Wis. – History was made on Wednesday night inside the R. John Buuck Fieldhouse. The Falcons posted the biggest comeback in program history with a 75-74 victory over Marian. The victory propels Concordia to 4-8 on the year and to fifth place in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference at 4-3.

After playing one of our worst halves of basketball, we showed a lot of resilience tonight," said head coach Shawn Cassidy. "I am really proud of the team. They never got down on themselves when we went down and they kept believing throughout and earned this victory."

The scoring started on Wednesday night with a layup from senior Freeman Jackson (Green Bay, Wis.) seven seconds into the game.

The next 15 minutes proved to be forgettable for the Falcons as the Sabres snuck the lead up to 38-11 with 4:37 left in the first half.

The Falcons cut the deficit to 20 on three different occasions in the final moments of the first half, but a free throw with 0.6 seconds left gave Marian a 43-22 lead at halftime. The Sabres shot 63.6 percent from the field in the half.

The Blue and White did not back down and pushed the tempo in the second half.

A 12-2 run that was capped off with back-to-back three-point baskets from senior Zech Hans (Hartland, Wis.) cut the deficit to 46-34 with 15:45 left.

Another 13-0 run for the Birds put the Falcons back in the game at 46-51 with 12:48 left. Senior Samuel Meerstein (Green Bay, Wis.) started the run with a pair of three-point baskets. Zech Hans ended the run with a three-point basket off a turnover.

The Sabres responded with a run of their own and pushed the lead up to 14 points at %:13 and 3:18 left.

Things were not looking good for Concordia when Marian held a 74-64 lead with 1:45 left.

Sam Meerstein helped spark the comeback with a three-point basket.

After the first of four turnovers in the final 100 seconds, Freeman Jackson sank a free throw to cut the deficit to six.

The Falcons took advantage of another bad pass and Freeman Jackson struck again with a jumper.

Another disastrous pass sent the Falcons down the floor and Zech Hans drained another three-point basket to send the contest into a one-possession game.

The Sabres sent the ball soaring out of bounds once again to give the Falcons the ability to take their second lead of the evening.

With 16 seconds left, Freeman Jackson drove to the hoop and drew the foul. The senior then made both of his free throws to give the Falcons their second lead of the game.

Marian had two shots fall short and the Falcons secured their biggest comeback in school history.   

The Falcons rebounded in shooting in the second half and connected on seven of the 13 three-point baskets after missing all five in the first half.

Concordia also connected on 18 of the 21 second-half free throws. Marian went 5-for-10 in the second half from the charity stripe.

Freeman Jackson led the flock with 22 points and three assists in the victory. Sam Meerstein secured 20 points for CUW.

Freshman Matt Merlo (Random Lake, Wis.) had six rebounds to lead Concordia.

Junior Mahlik Hall (Seattle, Wash.) led Marian with 22 points before he fouled out on Wednesday night. Junior JeanLuc Wilson (East Moline, Ill.) had a game-high 10 rebounds to go with his 16 points.

The Falcons look to extend their winning streak to four games on Saturday against Dominican on Mel's Charity/Special Olympics Day.