MILWAUKEE (WLCSports.com) - Senior
Grayson Goetz (Aurora, Ill.) knocked down a pair of free throws with 10.4 seconds left and Wisconsin Lutheran College made one last stop to complete a 97-96 come-from-behind victory over Concordia Chicago on Wednesday at the Time of Grace Center.
The Warriors (15-4, 10-2 NACC), who trailed for nearly all 40 minutes of game time, overcame a 19-point deficit to stun the Cougars (9-9, 6-7 NACC) and remain unbeaten on Catalyst Court this season.
CUC, which shot 61.1 percent in the first half, netted the first nine points of the game and stormed out to a 14-2 lead over WLC less than four minutes in. Concordia Chicago forced Wisconsin Lutheran to burn its second timeout of the opening half at the 14:17 mark trailing 23-7. The Cougars' lead reached a game-high 19 points at 43-24 with six-and-a-half minutes remaining until halftime. The Warriors, who trailed by double-digits for the final 17 minutes of the first half, managed to chip their deficit down to 10 points, 54-44, at halftime. Senior
Ryan Broeckel (Chilton, Wis.) led all scorers with 11 first-half points, as WLC went 17-for-18 from the charity stripe.
Wisconsin Lutheran, which countered for 66.7 percent shooting in the second half, opened on a 12-4 run, capped by a Goetz three-pointer, to trail by just two points three minutes in. The Warriors came within one at 71-70 five minutes later, but CUC rattled off a 10-2 run to build its lead back up to nine points with 10 minutes left. WLC still faced a nine-point deficit at the six-minute mark, but again climbed back within a point at 93-92 on Broeckel's fastbreak layup with 2:16 remaining. Concordia Chicago connected on its 12th and final three of the game on the ensuing possession to lead by four with a minute to play. Senior
AJ Vos (Lombard, Ill.) knocked down a triple from the left wing to cut the deficit back down to one, and Wisconsin Lutheran made its second-to-last defensive stop with 20 seconds left. Coming out of a timeout, Goetz was fouled driving to the bucket and hit a pair of free throws with 10.4 seconds left to give the Warriors their first lead of the night, 97-96. A last-second Cougars' three-point attempt from the top of the arc was no good as time expired.
Broeckel was one of five players to finish in double figures for WLC, scoring 25 points and grabbing a team-high seven rebounds. Senior
Jacob Stoltz (Kewaskum, Wis.) poured in 24 points, including 15 in the second half, while Goetz recorded 17 points, seven assists, and six rebounds. Vos chipped in with 15 points, and freshman
Dom Hill (Waukesha, Wis.) added 11 points. Wisconsin Lutheran shot 54.5 percent (30-for-55) from the floor, the ninth time this season shooting at least 50 percent. The Warriors made a season-high 30 free throws on 33 attempts for 90.9 percent.
Jordan Matthews scored a team-high 22 points to pace four players in double figures for CUC, which shot 54.9 percent (39-for-71) for the game.Â
WLC concludes its two-game home week on Saturday when it hosts Marian (2-16, 2-9 NACC) at 1 p.m. Live coverage links will be available at WLCSports.com.
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