Second-half surge leads Tigers past Concordia

SEWARD, Neb. – Thanks to a 32-15 run to close out the game, the No. 6 Dakota Wesleyan University men's basketball team ousted Concordia University, 77-57 in a Great Plains Athletic Conference road matchup Saturday in Seward, Neb.

 Both teams kicked off the game with a 3-pointer, but it was Concordia who took an early lead following a shot in the first two minutes of the game.

 It was Ty Hoglund (Dell Rapids, S.D.) and Tyson Smiley (Omaha, Neb.) who made consecutive field goals to give the Tigers (9-1, 5-1 GPAC) the lead once again.

 Hoglund knocked down a 3-pointer, followed by a Nick Harden (Chicago, Ill.) shot to extend the Tiger lead to six points.

 After Hoglund scored five-straight points, the Bulldogs (7-2, 2-2 GPAC) pulled within four points at the midway mark of the half. However, the duo of Hoglund and Harden reeled off five-straight points to give DWU a 25-19 advantage.

 With 2:14 to play in the first half, the Tigers led by nine points. The Bulldogs closed the margin with four straight points and trailed DWU, 35-31 at the break.

 Concordia picked up in the second half where they left off in the first with a basket to pull within one possession of the Tigers. But a Collin Kramer (Volga, S.D.) 3-pointer and a Smiley basket pushed the lead back to seven points.

 With 14 minutes to play, the Tigers took a timeout. Coming out of the timeout, Harden knocked down a basket which was the only points for either team for two minutes.

 Smiley ended the scoring drought with a basket of his own, followed by a pair of shots by Harden and a Tristan Teichmeier (Sioux Falls, S.D.) shot to push the lead to double digits with 10 minutes to play.

 Concordia did not pull any closer as the Tigers held the Bulldogs at bay throughout the remainder of the game to win the road matchup.

 Harden paced the Tigers with 25 points, seven rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals. Hoglund added a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Teichmeier added 14 points and five boards off the bench. DWU shot 56.9% from the field and 46.2% from 3-point range. Concordia shot 36% from the field and scored less than 60 points for the first time this season.

 The Tigers host Valley City State University at 7 p.m. on Wednesday at the Corn Palace in Mitchell.