EUGENE, Ore. – Despite going 0-for-12 from three-point range and missing a key reserve due to illness, the No. 24 ranked Northwest Christian University men's basketball team still managed to force overtime before succumbing to Concordia University, 72-69 on Friday night.
 
The Beacons, one of the hottest three-point shooting teams in the conference and NAIA coming into the weekend, went without a triple for the entire night including five opportunities in the second half and two in the overtime period.
 
NCU shot 45.8% from the field and held the Cavaliers to just 34.3% shooting including a harsh 3-for-18 night of their own from beyond the arch. Unfortunately for the visitors, all three Cav triples came at crucial moments during a tense second half.
 
Head Coach Luke Jackson said, "This was a tough game. We missed some key free-throws and turned the ball over too much. You have to give Concordia a lot of credit. They were prepared for us and did what they needed to do to win."
 
When all was said and done, the combatants played through 16 ties and 12 lead changes but the Beacons only held an advantage for 2:29 of the first 33 minutes of the game. With 6:57 remaining in regulation, Javonte Byrd hit a jumper that gave the Beacons a 45-43 lead. NCU held that advantage for over five minutes.
 
With 1:49 remaining and NCU ahead by two points, Anthony Holton dropped his only three-pointer of the night, giving the Cavaliers a 55-54 lead. The Beacons answered with a layup from Austin Kuemper (pictured) on their next possession and the Beacons were up by one as the final minute began to tick down.
 
Concordia came up empty on their next possession and the Beacons looked to be in good shape when Byrd came down the court and hit a layup for a 58-55 lead with 44 seconds to play. The home team, however, had the answer once again as Davis Nuaimi drained his second triple of the night, tying the game with 20 seconds to play. NCU was unable to hit their own three-point attempt at the buzzer and the teams prepared for a bonus five minutes.
 
Tyler Velasquez gave CU the early overtime lead with a layup and Devyn Iglehart went 1-for-2 from the free-throw line on NCU's next possession. A layup by Holton put Concordia up by three, 62-59 with 4:31 remaining but the Beacons rallied back again. Kuemper and Byrd layups put the Beacons ahead, 63-62 but with 2:52 remaining, Valasquez connect on a pair of freebies to put the Cavs back on top.
 
After two minutes of fruitless possessions, Kuemper once again went to the well, only to be fouled by a Concordia player. Said player took opposition to the foul call and prompted a technical foul, resulting in an extra two free-throw attempts for the Beacons.
 
With 58 seconds remaining, Kuemper went 3-for-4 on his free-throws, suffering his first and only miss at the charity stripe on the third attempt. The result was a two-point NCU lead, 66-64. Concordia wasted little time getting back the lead as Velasquez successfully completed a three-point play they old fashioned way and the home team led 67-66 with 43 seconds remaining.
 
A turnover by the Beacons all but spelled the end as Concordia connected on four free-throws down the stretch to seal the win in the battle of top-25 teams.
 
The Beacons (11-4, 4-2 CCC), playing their first ever game between two ranked NAIA teams, was led by Kuemper who finished with 33 points, shooting 12-for-15 from the field and 9-for-10 from the free-throw line. The junior added a team-high eight rebounds and a game-leading two blocks. Byrd was the only other player in double figures for NCU, scoring eleven points. NCU finished the night with 19 turnovers and were out-rebounded for the first time this season in CCC action, 42-39.
 
Concordia (13-3, 4-2) had four in double-figures, led by Holton with 15 and Velasquez with 14. Esvan Middleton added a double-double with 13 points, 11 rebounds, and five steals. Nuaimi came off the bench to score 12.
 
NCU will look to rebound on Saturday night, traveling across to the other side of Portland for a clash with Warner Pacific College at 7:30 p.m.