WEATHERFORD, Okla. – No. 18 Augustana University men's basketball trailed 31-29 at the half but shot 50 percent from the field and hit seven 3-pointers in the second to defeat East Central University 67-61 on Saturday afternoon in Oklahoma.
 
Augustana starts the season 2-0 while East Central drops to 0-2.
 
Steven Schaefer put up a career-high in points for the second straight night for the Vikings. Schaefer was 6 of 7 from the field, hitting 5 of 7 from behind the arc, finishing with 16 points to go along with four assists.
 
Jordan Spencer pitched in with a season-high 19 points while adding four assists and three rebounds. Adam Beyer added nine points, five rebounds and four assists.
 
The Vikings finished the game shooting 46.2 percent (24 of 52) from the field, including 12 of 24 from 3-point range. East Central was 21 of 62 (33.9 percent) from the field, including 6 of 24 from 3-point range.
 
Braxton Reeves led East Central with 16 points on the night. Ben Brown-White added six points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
 
Augustana was hot from 3-point range to start out the game hitting 3 of 3 from behind the arc racing out to an 11-2 lead just under four minutes into the game.
 
The Vikings extended their lead to 19-11 on a jumper by Schaefer with 7:10 remaining in the first half but the Tigers answered with a 10-2 run that tied the game at 21 with 4:44 to go in the half. Schaefer knocked down a triple on Augustana's next possession to regain the lead but ECU was able to get the lead back and carry it into the half at 31-29.
 
Augustana was 11 of 26 from the field in the first half, including 5 of 12 from 3-point range. Schaefer led the Vikings with seven first-half points on 3 of 4 shooting.
 
The two teams traded points to start the second half until Zach Huisken knocked down a 3-pointer that tied the game at 40. Augustana and ECU would play to two more tie scores until the Vikings were able to go on a 7-0 run to take a 52-45 lead.
 
East Central tied the game at 56 with 4:17 to play but the Vikings out-scored the Tigers 11-5 over the final four minutes to secure their second straight win.
 
Augustana returns to action Monday, Nov. 14 hosting Valley City State at the Elmen Center at 7 p.m.