SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Zach Huisken scored a career-high 17 points on 7 of 10 shooting, including 3 of 3 from 3-point range, to lead No. 1 seed Augustana University men's basketball (25-2) to a 91-57 win over Minnesota Crookston (3-24) in the first round of the NSIC/Sanford Health Tournament on Wednesday night.
 
Daniel Jansen led the Vikings with 24 points on 11 of 15 shooting for his 15th 20-plus point performance of the season. Steven Schaefer added nine points off the bench hitting 3 of 4 from behind the arc and Casey Schilling pitched in with eight points and nine rebounds.
 
Jordan Spencer dished out seven assists and grabbed six rebounds in 20 minutes for the Vikings. Alex Richter dropped in 13 points on 4 of 6 shooting while also going 4 of 5 from the free throw line.
 
Fourth-ranked Augustana shot 60 percent (36 of 60) from the field and hit 11 of 20 (55 percent) from behind the arc. The Vikings out-rebounded the Golden Eagles 42-29, including 34-20 on the defensive glass.
 
The Vikings started out the night 5 of 7 from the field to build a 12-6 lead five minutes into the contest. Augustana was then held without a basket for nearly two minutes before going on a 12-4 run over the next 3:32 to build a 26-13 lead.
 
Tanner Odegaard and Zach Huisken knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers at the tail end of the run and the Viking offense continued to roll in the first half.
 
The Vikings out-scored the Golden Eagles 21-10 over the final six-plus minutes of the half to take a 48-25 lead into the break.
 
Augustana finished the half shooting 66.7 percent (20 of 30) from the field knocking down 6 of 10 from 3-point range.
 
Jansen led the Vikings with 15 points in the first half on 7 of 10 shooting while Huisken pitched in with 10 points hitting 4 of 5 field goals, including 2 of 2 from behind the arc.
 
Augustana continued to shoot hot in the second half as the Vikings led by 18 or more throughout the remainder of the game.
 
The Vikings stretched the lead up to 27 with an 11-2 run in the middle of the half and led by as much as 33 in the final five minutes of the contest.
 
Augustana, currently ranked No. 1 in the NCAA Central Region, improved to 8-6 all-time in the NSIC Tournament with tonight's win. The Vikings advance to the NSIC/Sanford Health Men's Basketball Tournament quarterfinals where they will take on the University of Sioux Falls on Saturday at the Sanford Pentagon with tipoff set for 5:30 p.m.