SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Augustana men’s basketball team fell 68-66 to Northern State in the quarterfinal round of the NSIC Tournament Saturday afternoon. The Vikings conclude their season with a 19-11 record.
Augustana and Northern State tallied seven ties and 10 lead changes as neither team was able to put a firm grasp on the outcome until the clock ran out.
The Wolves grabbed an opening 4-0 lead but then sophomore Matt Todd went on a personal 10-0 run, scoring the Vikings first 10 points on 4-of-4 shooting. That opened a back-and-forth affair until the Vikings took a 21-all score to a 31-23 lead with 1:51 remaining in the first half. Augustana entered halftime leading 33-30.
The second half totaled five lead changes and five ties. Two of those ties came in the final minute as Matt Todd drove the lane for a layup to knot things up at 64. Parker Fox then broke the tie with a layup of his own with 27 seconds remaining.
As time was ticking down, sophomore Dylan LeBrun took a handoff straight-away from the basket and carried a layup to the basket to tie the score at 66-66 with six seconds on the clock. On the ensuing Wolves possession, Andrew Kallman went to the free-throw line with 2.7 seconds remaining where he sank both free throws.
After a timeout, the Vikings had a play set up but the near full-court inbounds pass was intercepted concluding the game.
Todd ended with 19 points while LeBrun tallied 13 points and five assists. Junior Tyler Riemersma recorded 15 rebounds.
The Wolves were led by Gabe King with 22 points.
The loss ends the career of four Augustana seniors Beau Keeve, Tommy Jensen, Carter Rynda and Bodey Behrends.
