PORTLAND, Ore. – Down 16 points in the second half and sputtering offensively, No. 13-ranked Concordia University turned to its defense to come roaring back and beat rival Warner Pacific 89-86 in overtime Friday night at Cavalier Gymnasium.

In a game featuring explosive offensive runs on both sides, it was defense that once again won the day for Concordia (11-2, 2-1 Cascade Collegiate Conference), as the Cavaliers forced the Knights into 24 turnovers and several bad shots down the stretch.

Warner Pacific (11-3, 2-1 CCC) struggled out of the gate, falling behind 24-12 midway through the first half thanks to a series of misses and inconsistent defense. From that point, however, the game turned dramatically. The Knights fought back to take the lead before the half and continued their run over the ensuing 10 minutes, building a 65-49 lead with just over 10 minutes to play.

In the process, Warner Pacific forced Concordia into several bad decisions and disrupted the Cavaliers' offense, as the hosts missed 11 consecutive shots in the early goings of the second half. But just when it seemed the Knights had the victory in hand, the game turned again.

Concordia scored 10 straight points behind the press before a Coletun Tarr 3-pointer pushed the lead back to 68-59, but then it was the Knights' turn to break down offensively. Warner Pacific turned the ball over six times in five minutes as the Cavaliers went on another 10-0 run, capped by a Tyler Velasquez 3-pointer to give Concordia its first lead in nearly 20 minutes at 69-68.

After a 74-74 tie with two minutes to play, neither side could score again and the teams headed to overtime. Warner Pacific took an 84-79 lead on back-to-back 3-pointers by Tarr and Laron Daniels with one minute left, but Concordia had one last finishing kick.

The Cavs forced the issue at the foul line, hitting 7 of 8 shots from the charity stripe down the stretch to atone for a 7 for 18 performance during regulation. Down three and out of timeouts, Warner Pacific was unable to get a final shot off in the closing seconds.

Warner Pacific saw all five starters score in double figures, as Tarr led the way with 24. Earl Jones made his season debut with 17 and Daniels had 16, while Doug Thomas had 13 and Josh Black added 12.


Story courtesy of CU Sports Information