Box Score
In a game filled with big runs, St. Cloud State defeated No. 17 Augustana a 68-58 in a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference contest Saturday in St. Cloud, Minn.
Augustana fell to 16-4 overall and 9-4 in the NSIC after losing back-to-back games for the first time this season. St. Cloud State improved to 16-4 overall and 10-3 in the conference.
The opening 5 minutes and final 5 minutes of each half proved to be the difference in the game.
Augustana came out on fire. The Vikings made 7 of their first 11 shots, while SCSU missed its first 5 attempts as the Vikings raced out to a 15-0 lead with 14:26 left in the first half.
David Foster fueled the rally by scoring 7 of his team-high 16 points during that stretch.
But St. Cloud State gradually chipped away at the Viking lead. Then, trailing 26-17 with 4:49 to play in the half, the Huskies made a charge, outscoring Augie 12-1, including a long 3-pointer at the buzzer by Brett Putz, to take a 29-27 halftime lead.
St. Cloud State carried that momentum into the second half. The Huskies used a 15-5 run to start the period to increase their lead to 44-32 with just under 15 minutes to play in the game.
SCSU managed to increase its lead to 14 points at 58-44 with 6:26 on the clock before the Vikings made a final run.
Cody Schilling, who finished with 15 points, buried a 3-pointer to spark a 13-4 run that drew the Vikings within 5 points at 62-57 with 2:21 remaining.
But that was as close as the Vikings would get. They missed 3-point shots on their next 2 possessions and the Huskies sank 6 of 8 free throws down the stretch to hold off the Vikings.
Augustana shot 40.4 percent (23 of 57) from the field for the game, including 45.8 percent (11 of 24) in the second half. However, St. Cloud State shot 56 percent (14 of 25) from the field in the second half and 45.5 percent (25 of 55) for the game.
Augustana remains on the road again next week as the Vikings travel to Wayne, Neb., to take on Wayne State on Saturday, February 6, at 6 p.m.
