Concordia (Mich.) took the lead for good midway through the first half on Wednesday evening at Tam-o-Shanter on the way to a 56-48 victory over Lourdes.
 
"Concordia is the hottest team in the league," head coach Andre Smith said afterwards.  "They really shoot the ball well."
 
The difference in the game came from beyond the three-point arc, where the Cardinals connected on seven three-point attempts, shooting at a 41.2% clip while Lourdes managed just one triple in 10 tries on the evening.
 
"We don't shoot the basketball very well," Smith stated.
 
Lourdes led 12-8 midway through the first half when Concordia went on an 8-0 run, capped by back-to-back three-pointers from Ed Shinevarre.  The Cardinals continued to increase their lead throughout the first half, building a 12-point advantage before taking a 30-22 lead into the locker room.
 
Brillon Pritchett (Gary, Ind./McAdams H.S.) scored the first basket of the second half for Lourdes to pull the Gray Wolves within six before Concordia answered with six of the next eight points.  The Gray Wolves finally closed to five, 45-40, following a three-point play by Zach Steinmetz (Toledo, Ohio/Saint John's H.S.) with 7:18 to play. 
 
A Steinmetz jumper with just over four minutes left pulled Lourdes to within four, 48-44, before the Cardinals scored the next six points to secure the victory.
 
"We have a tough time scoring," Smith added.  "It seemed like every time we got close their best players took over to extend their lead."
 
Steinmetz led all scorers with 17 points while grabbing a team-high seven rebounds for Lourdes.  Pritchett, Jake DuPree (Toledo, Ohio/Whiteford H.S.), and E.J. Blackwell (Rochester, Pa./Rochester H.S.) each added eight point for the Gray Wolves.  DuPree also had six assists.
 
Andrew Patrick led Concordia (10-5, 9-1 WHAC) with 13 points while Josh Fugate added 11 more as the Cardinals remained atop the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference.
 
Lourdes (9-8, 5-4) will look to stop its five-game losing skid on Saturday afternoon as the Gray Wolves conclude a three-game homestand.  Siena Heights will visit Tam-o-Shanter for a 3 p.m. contest.