The University of Minnesota Crookston (UMC) Golden Eagle Men’s Basketball team won an overtime thriller over the Augustana Vikings 74-71 in a Northern Sun Conference game played on Gary Senske Court at Lysaker Gymnasium at the University of Minnesota Crookston. It was the first UMC Men’s Basketball victory over Augustana since the NSIC tournament game in the 2018-19 season.
FIRST HALF –
It was a back-and-forth first half, but Augustana got the early advantage with a 4-0 lead. Andrew Stokes (Jr. Westchester, IL) came to life for Crookston, scoring the next six points and Reid Grant (Soph. Johnston, IA) added to baskets to cap a 10-0 run for a 10-4 UMC lead. Augustana battled back on a 10-4 run to tie the game at 14-14 with 11:10 left in the half. UMC responded with a 9-4 run with a Brayden Carlson (Fresh. Woodbury) basket and five straight points from Reid, and after a Viking basket, Reid added a three-pointer, and Aguek Deng (Sr. Des Moines, IA) made two free throws for a 23-18 lead with 7:33 to go in the half.
Augustana battled back over the next three minutes to take a 30-29 lead with 3:24 remaining in the half. The game was tied at 30-32, 33, 34, and UMC ended the half with a Micah Garrett (Jr. Portland, OR) free throw to take a 35-34 lead going into halftime.
SECOND HALF –
Augustana had a good start to the second half as they went on a 6-0 run in the first two minutes to take a 40-35 lead. Crookston’s Grant stopped the run with five straight points to tie the game at 40. Augustana regained the lead and held a three to five-point lead. They took their biggest lead of the game when they led 57-49 with 9:59 left in regulation. Aguek Deng stopped the run with a free throw, Carlson scored in the paint, and after an Augustana basket, UMC’s Grant answered with a three-pointer to get within a 59-55 deficit. Augustana had a 65-58 lead with five minutes remaining in the half when the Golden Eagles finished the half strong. It started with a Mitchell layup and two Garrett free throws. Grant added a reverse layup, and Garrett hit a pull-up jump shot to give UMC a 66-65 lead. The teams were tied at 66, and the Golden Eagles took a 68-66 lead after two free throws with 16 seconds left in regulation. Augustana tried a three-pointer for a win and missed, but grabbed the offensive rebound and scored as time expired to force overtime with the score knotted up at 68.
OVERTIME –
UMC entered overtime with both Reid Grant and Andrew Stokes playing with four fouls. Augustana’s Conner Kraft scored first in the extra period, but UMC could not answer. Grant fouled out with 3:18 to go in overtime, and Augustana’s Sam Rensch made just one of the two ensuing free throws to keep the lead at one possession. Andrew Stokes cut the lead to 1 on a tough layup with about 2:30 left in the extra session. UMC played solid defense over the next minute, and called a timeout following a rebound and down 71-70 with 1:10 to go. Out of the timeout, Stokes was fouled on a shot, and he made both free throws to give UMC a 72-71 lead with a minute left. A miss on a 1-and-1 led to UMC regaining possession with under 30 seconds left. UMC missed a floater through contact, but a huge rebound frim GD Deng and a couple of free throws from Jordan Mitchell made it a 3 point game with 12 seconds left. Aguek Deng made a final block to seal the Golden Eagle victory, 74-71.
UMC improves to 4-16 overall and 3-11 in the NSIC and will host Minot State on Wednesday. Augustana drops to 9-11 overall and 6-8 in the NSIC.
| 1st | 2nd | Overtime | Final | |
| Minnesota Crookston | 35 | 33 | 6 | 74 |
| Augustana University | 34 | 34 | 3 | 71 |
| For UMC | Points | Rebounds | Assists/Steals/Blocks |
| Reid Grant | 23 | 2 | 1 assist/1 steal |
| Andrew Stokes | 17 | 11 | 1 block |
| Jordan Mitchell | 12 | 5 | 1 assist/1 steal |
| Micah Garrett | 10 | 6 | 1 assist |
| Aguek Deng | 10 | 4 | 1 steal/1 block |
| Brayden Carlson | 8 | 7 |
