POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. – The No. 2 ranked Golden Eagles trailed by as many as 26 in the opening half and by 25 at the break, but a 59-28 advantage in the closing 20 minutes lifted them to an 89-83 win over Pacific Union (Calif.). The victory ups CU's record to 31-3 on the year as they will play their second round game on Friday at 9:30 a.m. EST against No. 15 St. Francis (Ind.), who defeated Oregon Tech 100-92.
 
Game Flow
Cory Cox opened the scoring with a jumper in the opening minute and Cornerstone held a slim 12-10 lead on a Michael Bradshaw triple but the final 15:12 of the opening half was all Pacific Union. The Pioneers would go on to hit 63.3% of their shots, including 10/17 from behind the arc as they built a 55-30 lead at the break. Their largest lead came with just under a minute to play in the first half on the third triple from Ben Juzak to go up 55-29.

As the second half started, Cornerstone slowly chipped away at the lead as CU scored the first five points, forcing PUC into an early timeout. That lead would be extended back to 22 with 16:53 to play but the remainder of the contest was all Golden Eagles. CU used a 13-0 spurt to get within seven at 61-54 with 11:37 to play with five of the last eight points coming from Michael McLaughlin. After the Pioneers upped the lead back to 10 with 9:49 to play. CU again went on a big run, this time a 14-0 one finished off by 10 straight points from Cory Cox to lead 74-68. The closest PUC got down the stretch was three points but CU hit their free-throws to pick up the win.
 

Say What?
"We had some looks of defeat in our eyes at halftime, but we said to the guys that if they can play that way in first 20, we can play the same in the closing 20." – Senior Cory Cox

"We started to show some urgency which we did not have on defense in the first half. Nothing really changed but we made their shots more contested" – Senior Michael McLaughlin

"We were not the aggressors in the first half as we played on our heels and they played on their toes. We talked about that at halftime and made some changes mentally" – Head coach Kim Elders
 

By the Numbers
9/18 – CU made nine FG's in the first half and doubled it in the second
10 – CU gave up 10 triples in the first 20 minutes….gave up only four in the second
26/22 – Cory Cox and Kyle Steigenga led CU in points
22/11 – Kyle Steigenga had a double-double in points and rebounds
36-30 – Cornerstone out-rebounded the Pioneers by six
 

Up Next
Cornerstone advances to the second round where they will face No. 15 Saint Francis (Ind.) on Friday at 9:30 a.m. EST.
 
Men's Basketball Contact: Aaron Sagraves
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