SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Augustana men's basketball team closes out the regular season at Southwest Minnesota State at 7:30 p.m., on Thursday before hosting Sioux Falls at 3:30 p.m., on Saturday. The Vikings enter the weekend with a two-game lead for second place in the NSIC, needing just one win or one SMSU loss to clinch the second seed in the NSIC Tournament
Complete action can be followed on GoAugie.com/Live and the GoAugie app, presented by The Original Pancake House. The app can be downloaded in the App Store or Google Play.
About the Mustangs
Southwest Minnesota State was selected to win the conference in the NSIC Preseason Poll. The Mustangs are 15-10 on the season and 13-7 in the conference, a record that is tied for third. Preseason Player of the Year Jacob Braaten averages 14.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game to lead the team. Aeron Stevens is right behind him averaging 12.8 points per game and Micah Schlaak averages 11.6 points per game in 51.5 percent shooting from the field and 46.8 percent shooting from deep.
About the Cougars
Sioux Falls was selected to finish eighth overall and sixth in the division in the NSIC Preseason Poll. The Cougars are 13-13 overall and 10-10 in the NSIC, ranking in a tie for eighth. Brogan Madson leads USF with 18.3 points per game while Taylen Ashley adds 14.3 points and 2.9 assists per game.
Road Warriors
The Vikings have gone an NSIC-best 9-2 on the road this season, including 9-1 in conference games. AU has won six consecutive road games, tying the third longest road winning streak in program history. Their .818 road winning percentage is also tied for second in program history.
Longest Road Win Streak
9 - 2014-15
7 - 2015-16
6 - 2025-26
6 - 2021-22
6 - 2010-11
Best Road Win Percentage
.910 (10-1) - 2015-16
.818 (9-2) - 2025-26
.818 (9-2) - 2014-15
Last Time Out
The Augustana men's basketball team saw its nine-game win streak come to an end, falling 87-80 to NSIC Champion St. Cloud State on Saturday afternoon at the Elmen Center.
Tameron Ferguson led the team with 21 points, nine assists and seven rebounds. Tanner Te Slaa had 18 points to go with seven rebounds and Caden Hinker had 13 points. Brady Helgren added 10 points and six rebounds while Bennett Fried had six rebounds to go with three points.
About the Vikings
Augustana is 17-8 overall and 15-5 in the NSIC while sitting in second place. They did that after playing a tough non-conference slate, with two of their three losses coming by four points or less. With one win or one SMSU loss this weekend, the Vikings will clinch the two-seed in the NSIC Tournament and will play at 7 p.m., on Saturday inside the Sanford Pentagon.
Tameron Ferguson has been one of the best players in the country in his sophomore season, leading the team with 19.9 points and 6.8 assists per game while shooting 52.9 percent from the field and 36.2 percent from deep. He has tallied at least 20 points in 15 of his last 21 games, including a 28-point performance against Sioux Falls on Dec. 6.
Ferguson is the first Viking to record multiple point-assist double doubles since Jordan Spencer in 2017-18 and is the only player in the country averaging at least 19 points and six assists per game. He is eighth in the country with a 3.19 assist/turnover ratio and is the engine for an offense that turns the ball over just 9.6 times a game, the third-fewest total in the country.
After missing all of last season, Caden Hinker has been a dominant force in his return. The redshirt junior has recorded six double-doubles while leading the team with 6.2 rebounds per game, including 5.5 defensive rebounds per game. He's second on the team with 15.6 points per game and scored a career-high 26 points against Winona State on Nov. 18 while grabbing a career-high 12 rebounds against Northwest Missouri State on Nov. 15.
Senior Sam Rensch is third on the team with 14.0 points per game. He is second on the team with 2.1 assists per game and has grabbed 3.5 rebounds per contest. He has recorded a steal in 22 of 25 games and erupted for 30 points on 12 of 17 shooting from the field against Minnesota State on Thursday. He leads the team with 1.7 steals per game.
Tanner Te Slaa is fourth on the team in scoring, averaging 10.4 points per game while adding 3.8 rebounds per game. The 2024-25 All-NSIC Second Team honoree has knocked down at least two 3-pointers in 14 games this season, including seven of his last eight games, with the Vikings holding a 12-2 record in those 14 games. The Vikings are also 10-3 when Te Slaa scores in double figures, something he has done in six consecutive games. In that six-game stretch, Te Slaa is averaging 14.8 points per game while knocking down 16 of 36 shots from deep.
After being inserted into the starting lineup on Jan. 9, Brady Helgren took full advantage of his opportunity. The junior scored a career-high 21 points on 8 of 11 shooting against Jamestown on Jan. 9 and followed that on Jan. 10, reseting his career-high with 22 points on 10 of 14 shooting while tying a career-high with nine rebounds. He averaged 16.8 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in his first four starts while shooting 69.2 percent from the field and added an 11-point, five-rebound performance while taking just four shots against Minnesota Duluth on 1/31. For the season, Helgren is averaging 6.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game after grabbing a career-best 12 boards against Minnesota State.
Bennett Fried had one of the best games of his young career on Dec. 11, tying a career high with 20 points and 12 rebounds while shooting 9 of 13 from the field against St. Cloud State. He has scored in double figures 10 times, including all four times he has taken at least nine shots from the field. He's fifth on the team with 8.1 points per game while grabbing 3.6 rebounds per game and shooting 65.0 percent from the field. In his last 10 games, Fried has shot 82.4 percent (28 of 34) from the field.
Series History
Augustana and SMSU will meet for the 50th time with AU leading the series 33-16. The Vikings have won 13 of the last 14 meetings, including two wins last season while the Mustangs were ranked and a victory this season. Earlier this year, the Vikings shot 17 of 24 from deep while Tameron Ferguson had 26 points and 11 assists in a 97-75 win in the Elmen Center. AU is 14-8 in Marshall in the series.
It'll be the 86th iteration of the Vikings and Cougars with AU taking a 43-42 lead earlier this season. It took two overtimes, but the Vikings shot 57.1 percent from the field and Ferguson, Sam Rensch and Tanner Te Slaa combined for 74 points as the Vikings won 108-106. Augustana is 23-15 as the road team but have lost three straight when at home.
