(Ann Arbor, MI) – Concordia men's basketball played their second straight home game with a contest against Greenville University (0-6). The Cardinals looked to claim their first victory of the year. CUAA set a new record for points in the Ricky Yahn coaching era in a high-scoring 135-101 win. The team shot 54-77 from the field overall for an impressive 70.1% field goal percentage.
Evan Neff led the Cardinals with 28 points in the game. Thomas Hronis finished with 24 points, going 6-12 from behind the arc. Matt Lockhart, Matt Kohler, and Zac Clark tied for a team-high 7 rebounds while scoring 14, 12, and 10 points respectively. Bernard Kasanda had a double-double with 12 points and a team-high 13 assists.
Zachary Johnson notched a layup for Concordia's first points of a high-scoring first half. The Cardinals used the fast break effectively to jump out to an 8-2 lead after a layup from Matt Kohler. Bernard Kasanda and Evan Neff had early baskets as well.
Matt Lockhart threw down a dunk at the 14:17 mark to put Concordia up 16-10. Thomas Hronis began to light up the game from behind the arc with 3 straight triples, extending the lead to 25-12. Greenville answered with a 7-0 run but Anthony Condie countered with an offensive putback.
Zachary Johnson drilled a 3-pointer and Evan Neff scored two more layups. The Cardinals continued to push their lead by using the fast break and finding open men under the basket. Thomas Hronis heated up again with three more 3-pointers late in the half and CUAA led 63-47 at halftime.
Thomas Hronis opened scoring in the second half with a layup. Concordia took a 71-49 lead after a fast break layup from Bernard Kasanda, but Greenville answered with a 9-0 run. Matt Kohler ended the run with a 3-pointer and the Cardinals continued to score with open layups.
Evan Neff hit a 3-pointer and Devyn Jones made a layup and a triple to push Concordia over the 100-point mark. Matt Lockhart threw down his second dunk of the game and the Cardinals kept filling up the scoresheet.
Erik Mroczek drilled a late triple as CUAA maintained their lead. Every Cardinal to appear in the game scored at least one point and Concordia secured the 135-101 victory.
Concordia improves to 1-3 with the win. The Cardinals will travel to Spring Arbor on Monday, January 25 for their next game. Tip-off is at 7pm.
