CROOKSTON, Minn. - The Augustana men's basketball team finished a perfect road weekend on Saturday afternoon, defeating Minnesota Crookston 85-77 at the Lysaker Gymnasium.
The Vikings (10-7, 8-4 NSIC) shot 51.9 percent (28 of 54) from the field and made 24 of 30 free throws while the Golden Eagles (3-15, 1-10) shot 49.2 percent (29 of 59) from the field and shot just 16 free throws, making 13 of them.
Tameron Ferguson scored 21 points to lead five Vikings in double figures while adding seven assists and six rebounds.
Sam Rensch and
Brady Helgren each scored 14 points while Rensch grabbed six rebounds and Helgren added five.
Caden Hinker poured in 12 points and
Amari Westmoreland-Vendiola had 11 while going 9 of 10 from the free throw line.
Hinker opened the game with a 3-pointer for the second consecutive game and Rensch added a jumper to give AU the first five points. The Golden Eagles scored the next six but a Ferguson layup at the 18:47 mark gave AU a 7-6 lead.
The Viking lead stretched to 14-10 when a Hinker 3-pointer and Ferguson layup broke up even play with 13:00 to go in the half. UMC scored six of the next eight points before four Rensch points contributed to a 7-0 AU run, making it 23-16 Vikings with 7:39 to go in the half.
In the final 7:39, UMC scored 12 points and AU scored 10 to bring the Vikings to a 33-28 lead at the half. Rensch and Hinker each had nine points to lead the offense.
UMC opened the second half with a 13-9 run to pull within a point but Westmoreland-Vendiola knocked down a free throw and Helgren added a putback to give the Vikings a 45-41 lead with 15:08 to go in the game.
After two more UMC free throws Helgren and Westmoreland-Vendiola each got baskets to start an 8-2 run, stretching the Viking lead to 53-45. The offense kept pushing, eventually growing the lead to 58-48 at the 10:42 mark.
After UMC chipped back within four, Rensch, Te Slaa, Hinker and Ferguson each chipped in to bring the lead back to 10 at 68-58 with 7:03 remaining. The Viking offense kept trading baskets the rest of the way, offsetting the Golden Eagles the rest of the way until a UMC layup as time expired brought the game to its final score.
The Vikings continue their road stretch next weekend, starting with Minot State on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
