SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Augustana men’s basketball team overcame a slow start to survive and advance, topping St. Cloud State 75-67 Wednesday night in the opening round of the NSIC/Sanford Health Men’s Basketball Tournament.
The Vikings advance to the quarterfinal round on Saturday against Northern State. Tip-off inside the Sanford Pentagon is slated for noon.
Augustana fell behind 14-5 in the opening minutes of the contest and trailed by nine points again at 18-9 before utilizing a 6-0 run to pull within a basket at 28-26 with 6:31 remaining in the half.
With the deficit hovering around the two-to-four point mark, the Vikings entered intermission trailing 37-35.
Augustana then jumped on the Huskies to open the second half, using an 8-0 run to take a 49-43 lead with 16:14 remaining in the contest. The run started with a thundering dunk from Adam Dykman and utilized jumpers from Matt Todd and Tyler Riemersma before concluding with a pair of Dykman free throws.
The Huskies, who fell to 14-15 on the year, fought to tie the game at 52-all and 57-57. With 8:42 remaining in the contest, Jameson Bryan received a pass from Dylan LeBrun and swished a 3-point basket to give the Vikings a lead they would not relinquish, despite repeated attempts from SCSU.
Augustana was able to build its lead as large as seven points going away before settling on the final 75-67, aided by late free throws as SCSU attempted to keep the game within reach.
Five Vikings scored in double figures led by Michael Schaefer with 17 points and eight rebounds. Joining him was LeBrun with 12 points with Dykman, Todd and Isaac Fink each scoring 11.
In a clean game, the Vikings committed just five turnovers, the second-straight of five or less, while St. Cloud State committed nine.
The Huskies, who shot 43.9 percent from the field, were led by Anthony Roberts with 24 points.
Augustana carries its 19-10 record into the quarterfinals against NSIC Champion Northern State.
