GOLDEN BEARS FALL TO UNBEATEN ST. THOMAS TOMMIES IN OVERTIME

Junior forward Craig Heiman (Marshall, Wis.) poured in 26 points including a three-pointer with 1:35 to play to break a 66-66 tie in overtime, but the University of St. Thomas (9-0) would score six points in the final 68 seconds to upend Concordia University (6-5) in a non-conference matchup between the St. Paul schools.

There were 42 fouls and 48 total free throws between the two teams in what was a physical contest between the third ranked Division III team in the nation against the host Golden Bears, a Division II member.

The game was tight throughout with nine ties and 16 lead changes with both teams holding a large lead of nine. Concordia's nine point edge occurred with 11:41 to play in regulation, a 50-41 advantage that came on the heels of a 13-1 run that spanned nearly four minutes of play.

St. Thomas started strong defensively, holding CU to just one field goal in the first six-plus minutes of play before sophomore Matt Hackl (Seymour, Wis.) knocked down one of three first half three-pointers. Luckily for the Golden Bears, they only surrended eight points in the opening six minutes and would come back and take the lead at the 11:54 mark with Hackl's second three-pointer.

Hackl finished the night with 13 points and nine rebounds off the bench. He was 4-7 from the floor and 3-5 from long range.

Concordia's defense stalled the UST offense during the early part of the game as well, keeping UST at eight points for a three and a half minute span.

With Concordia leading 16-15 at the 8:17 mark in the half, UST shut down the CU offense once again, holding them to just three points over the next five minutes as UST built their largest lead of the night, holding a 28-19 lead with 3:37 to play.

Heiman stopped the cold streak this time, drilling a three with 3:12 to play and Concordia would pull within five when junior Sammy Ricks (St. Paul, Minn.) put in a layup just on a nice pass from senior Matt Cadwell (St. Paul, Minn.) just before the buzzer. Cadwell and Ricks each scored eight while Ricks had five assists with Cadwell dishing three.

Heiman finished the game 10-21 from the field and knocked down 4-10 from three-point distance while collecting eight rebounds. He was busy on the evening, playing 43 of a possible 45 minutes.

B.J. Viau was tough to stop on the offensive glass, pulling down 10 of his 14 rebounds on the offensive end while finishing with a team-high 19 points. He also had four steals and three assists in a well balanced evening of play.
UST struggled from behind the arc, hitting just 4-21. Tyler Nicolai hit 4-9 from three while the Tommies' leading scorer, Joe Scott, was 0-9 from downtown and 2-14 from the field.

The Golden Bears and Tommies met for the 11th time in series history, with UST winning all 11 meetings.
Concordia returns to conference action for the remainder of the season with a big tilt at St. Cloud State this Saturday at 4 p.m. Both teams carry the only unbeaten records in the league with identical 4-0 records facing the same league schedules thus far.