MINNESOTA CROOKSTON MEN’S BASKETBALL LOSES SECOND HALF LEAD IN LOSS TO AUGUSTANA

The University of Minnesota Crookston men’s basketball team was outscored 59-39 in the second half off a 91-76 loss to the Augustana Vikings in an NSIC matchup played at Sioux Falls Arena.
Augustana scored the first four points before a Ben Juhl (Soph., Clive, IA) three-pointer gave the Golden Eagles their first points. Ben Juhl scored a lay-up to provide UMC a 5-4 lead. The Vikings responded with four-straight points before Juhl added another three-pointer tying the game at 8-8. A pair of Chase Johnson (R-Soph., La Crosse, WI) free-throws gave UMC the 10-8 lead with 13:26 to play in the first half. A Malcolm Cohen (R-Jr., Detroit, MI) jumper pushed Minnesota Crookston’s lead to 14-11, but Augustana responded with a 19-11 run to gain a 30-25 lead with 4:53 left in the first half. UMC responded with a 6-0 run to take a 31-30 lead. Trailing by two with 1:27 left in the half, UMC scored the final four points of the half with a Harrison Cleary (Jr., Oak Creek, WI) jump shot giving Minnesota Crookston a 37-35 halftime lead.
The Golden Eagles opened a thirteen-point lead opening the second half with a 13-2 run to go ahead 50-37 with 16:43 to play. Augustana responded with six-straight points to pull within 50-43 before a 12-2 Vikings’ run regained a 55-54 lead with 12:19 remaining. An 8-0 run after a Chase Johnson lay-up pushed Augustana’s lead to 63-56. The Golden Eagles pulled within 71-70 with 3:57 to play after four-straight Harrison Cleary points, but Augustana scored five-straight points and finished the game on an 11-0 run to close out the 91-76 victory.
Minnesota Crookston drops to 7-5 overall and 1-3 in conference play. The Golden Eagles return to the court on Sunday when they travel to Wayne State for a 2:30 p.m. tipoff. Augustana improves to 5-3 overall and 3-1 in the NSIC.