Rodgers' Late Four-Point Play Lifts Concord Past West Virginia State, 75-71

ATHENS, W.Va. – Junior guard Jair Rodgers' four-point play with 1.8 seconds left propelled the Concord University men's basketball team to a 75-71 win over West Virginia State Wednesday night in Mountain East Conference play at the Carter Center.

After trailing early in the first half, CU (18-9, 13-8 MEC) ripped off a 15-0 run that span just over four minutes to give the Mountain Lions a 29-16 lead with 5:46 remaining until halftime.

Senior guard Tommy Bolte scored the first 10 points of the run before senior forward Jafar Musa added a layup and sophomore guard/forward Malik Johnson connected on a three-pointer.

The energy carried over for Concord as it took a 37-28 lead into halftime.

Out of the break, West Virginia State (12-15, 9-12 MEC) went on a 21-9 scoring spurt in the first seven minutes of the second half to grab a 49-46 lead. A Bolte three-pointer tied the game at 49-49, but the Yellow Jackets stayed hot as they opened up a seven-point lead, 61-54, with 8:43 left.

Concord slowly chipped away at the WVSU advantage before Bolte hit his fifth three-pointer of the night to allow CU to go up 69-67 with 4:02 remaining. Neither team scored over the next 3:30 before the Yellow Jackets tied the game with 1:38 left. Junior forward Simun Kovac's layup pushed the Mountain Lions in front with 1:04 remaining before West Virginia State answered on a transition layup with 19 seconds left, setting up the final sequence.

With seven seconds to go, Bolte penetrated down the right block. As he was cut off, he pitched the ball to Rodgers in the corner who sunk his only three-pointer of the game while being fouled. After Rodgers' foul shot, all the Yellow Jackets had time for was a meaningless desperation shot.

Bolte finished with 35 points on 14-for-26 shooting and a 5-of-10 showing from three-point range. He also grabbed eight rebounds.

Kovac and sophomore forward David Bea Mulumba each scored 10 points with Kovac adding a double-double with 10 rebounds.

The Mountain Lions conclude the regular season at UVa.-Wise 4:00 p.m. Saturday.