Hot shooting sends Cavs to second round of NAIA DII Championships 3/11/2015 3:58:21 PM STATS POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. – With a blistering first-half shooting display, Concordia University announced its arrival at the 2015 NAIA Championships with flair, defeating Indiana East 116-90 in the first round Wednesday morning. Concordia (25-6), ranked No. 14 in the NAIA DII, opened the game on fire, making its first nine shots and jumping out to an 11-1 lead before the Red Wolves could react. CU's quickness and press defense gave IUE (26-8) fits early on, but it was the shooting, particularly from the outside, that blew the game open. Concordia will advance to face No. 3-seeded Cornerstone University (Mich.). Cornerstone (29-5) defeated St. Thomas (Fla.), 74-58 earlier on Wednesday. Concordia's second round game will take place Friday, March 13, with an 8:30 a.m. (CST) opening tip off. The Cavaliers shot 82.4 percent from the field in the first half, including 83.3 percent (10 of 12) from beyond the 3-point line. Zach Geary made 4 of 6 of his attempts from long range during the period, which ended with the Cavs leading 66-39. The 66 points were the most scored by CU in a half this season. The game was all but put away by halftime, and though the Red Wolves did trim the lead down to 11 at 82-71 midway through the second, Concordia's ensuing run ended any faint hopes for IUE. The Cavaliers' shooting wasn't nearly as prolific after the break, but it was more than enough to walk away with a comfortable win and even flirt with the single-game NAIA Championships scoring record of 123 set by Bethel (Ind.) in 1997. CU's total tied for the fifth largest in an NAIA DII tourney game. The victory made the 2014-15 squad the most successful in program history, surpassing the win total (24-9) from the 1999-2000 team. The 116 points were also the most Concordia has ever scored in an NAIA Championships contest while the win evened CU's NAIA Tournament record at 2-2 The Cavaliers spread the scoring around, putting four players into double figures. Tyler Velasquez led the way, tying his career high of 29 points and dishing out six of the team's 12 assists. Geary finished with 18 points on 6 for 11 shooting (all 3-pointers), while Thomas Pierce added 17 on 8 for 9 shooting and Esvan Middleton chipped in with 16 points and eight rebounds. Concordia finished 45 of 68 from the floor (66 percent) and 14 for 23 from 3-point range (61 percent). The 45 made field goals tied the tournament record also held by Bellevue (Neb.) in 2008. Indiana East, ranked No. 19 in the final NAIA DII Coaches' Poll, was led by Vasha Davis, who finished with 18 points. Huston Clark had 16, Lucas Huffman and Parker Salinas each added 15 and Nick Bollenbacher had 10 for the Red Wolves.