Cardinals Prevail in Battle of Concordias

ANN ARBOR, Mich. - The Concordia University Wisconsin men's basketball team suffered a heartbreaking loss Friday night in the opening round of the Concordia Invitational Tournament (CIT) to the Division II NAIA Cardinals of Concordia Ann Arbor.

In a raucous home atmosphere, the Falcons fell 73-74 after a last-second shot, dropping their record to 8-9 overall on the season.

Junior Logan Landers (Cedarburg, Wis.) was a standout in the first half, scoring six straight points and assisting on a bucket from sophomore Matt Merlo (Random Lake, Wis.) to bring the Falcons within one, 13-14, with 13:18 remaining in the half. Landers kept the momentum going, hitting a midrange jumper from the elbow to tie the game before sophomore Casey Verhagen (Sheboygan, Wis.) made an athletic spin move and layup to give CUW a 17-15 lead.

Midway through the half, Merlo provided a highlight-reel play, grabbing an offensive rebound and slamming it home to force an Ann Arbor timeout, as CUW extended their lead to 21-15. Freshman Luke Eggemeyer (Perryville, Mo.) quickly made an impact off the bench, finishing a layup on an assist from sophomore Mekhi Sutton (San Diego, Calif.). Sutton then returned the favor, finding Landers for another bucket, putting the Falcons up 29-21.

As the first half wound down, sophomore Jacob Christjohn (Milwaukee, Wis.) drained a corner three-pointer, and in the final seconds, Verhagen broke the full-court press and lobbed a perfectly timed pass to Merlo, who threw down an emphatic dunk. The play silenced the home crowd and gave CUW a 44-37 lead at halftime.

After the break, the Cardinals came out firing and quickly regained the lead. From there, the game became a back-and-forth battle, with both teams trading punches and neither able to create any significant separation.

Landers carried his strong first-half performance into the second, hitting a pair of layups and a three-pointer early in the half. Around the midway point, Merlo connected on a triple, and Verhagen hit a pull-up midrange jumper to put the Falcons ahead 60-58 with about 10 minutes remaining.

Later, Landers knocked down another three-pointer, pulling CUW within one, 67-68. After a couple of key layups from Landers and Merlo, the Falcons grabbed a slim 73-70 lead with just under two minutes left.

With 28 seconds remaining, CUW led 73-71. However, a costly turnover gave the ball back to the Cardinals. On the final possession of the game, Ann Arbor recovered a missed shot and found an open three-point shooter, who sank the game-winning basket as time expired.

In the loss, Landers finished with 26 points and 11 rebounds, while Verhagen added 21 points, seven assists, and two steals. Merlo was all over the stat sheet, contributing 13 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and five blocks.

The Falcons will look to bounce back as they face the Concordia Chicago Cougars, a familiar NCAA Division III opponent. CUW and Concordia Chicago have a storied history, and the Falcons will be aiming to build on their earlier 114-point performance against the Cougars this season.