Box Score
The Augustana men's basketball team wasted little time in gaining the upper hand and once the Vikings had control, they never let up as they cruised to a 93-64 victory over Minnesota State University Moorhead in the second day of the NSIC Holiday HoopsFest Sunday night at the Sioux Falls Arena.
The Vikings improved to 4-1 on the season with their fourth-straight win, while the Dragons slipped to 1-2.
Augustana received contributions up and down the lineup. In the first half, nine Vikings reached the scoring column and eight players grabbed rebounds.
Augie trailed 7-6 with 16 minutes to play in the opening half. But after that, it was all Vikings. Augustana outscored the Dragons 22-7 over the next 6 minutes to open up a 28-14 lead. Following two free throws by MSUM's Justyn Burgess, the Vikings reeled off 10 unanswered points, including 6-straight points by freshman Cody Schilling, to increase the lead to 38-16 with 7:30 left before halftime.
The Vikings shot 50 percent from the field in the first half, making 18 of 36 shots. Augie also made 13 of 16 free throws. Meanwhile, MSUM managed to shoot 30 percent from the floor, connecting on just 9 of 30 attempts. The Vikings dominated the glass as well, outrebounding the Dragons 30-10 in the opening 20 minutes. Augie took a 52-29 lead into the locker room.
The Vikings were never challenged in the second half. They led by at least 21 points the entire second half, and eventually built a 32-point advantage with 1:34 left in the contest.
For Schilling, he enjoyed his best all-around performance in his young career as he recorded his first career double-double. He finished the night with 16 points and 11 rebounds, both career highs. He did most of his damage in the first half with 12 points and 8 boards.
Schilling had plenty of help. Although Augustana eclipsed 90 points, only three Vikings scored in double digits. Besides Schilling's 16 points, Eric Krogman scored a team-high 17 points and Lee Stephens chipped in with 10. However, 8 other Vikings scored, and seven of them had at least 5 points.
The same was true on the glass. The Vikings finished with 49 rebounds, including 24 offensive boards, compared to the Dragons' 26 total rebounds.
Augustana took advantage of its second chances as the Vikings shot 50 percent (34-for-68) from the field for the game and 82 percent (22-for-27) from the free throw line.
Burgess was the only MSUM player to reach double figures as he scored a game-high 19 points.
Augustana opens NSIC play next weekend with a pair of road games. On Friday, December 5, the Vikings will be in Bismarck, N.D., to face the University of Mary in an 8 p.m. contest.
