BOXSCORE
ST. PETER, Minn. -- A 15 point first-half deficit proved to much to overcome as the Augsburg College men's basketball team fell 66-58 to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference rival Gustavus Adolphus College on Monday night at Gus Young Court.
Augsburg (10-5 overall, 5-5 MIAC) was led by the duo of
Cory Polta (JR, Spring Lake Park, Minn./Spring Lake Park HS) and
Andy Grzesiak-Grimm (JR, Wyoming, Minn./St. Francis HS). Polta scored a game-high 17 points and added nine rebounds and two steals, while Grzesiak-Grimm pulled down a team-high 11 rebounds and added seven points and three blocked shots.
Matthew Quammen (SR, Victoria, Minn./Holy Family HS) finished the night with eight points and three assists, which included a 2-of-5 performance from beyond the arc, thereby extending his streak of hitting at least one three-pointer to 19 straight games.
Gustavus (9-5 overall, 7-2 MIAC) was led by Paul Blacklock, who posted his first double-double of the season, recording 14 points and 12 rebounds on 6-of-8 shooting from the floor.
Augsburg tied the game 12-12 on a layup by Polta at the 12:17 mark of the first half. Gustavus then went on a 17-3 run over the next six minutes and 43 second to go up 29-15 on the Auggies. The two teams traded baskets for the remainder of the half and Gustavus took a 38-23 lead into the intermission. Augsburg slowly chipped away at the Gustavus lead, pulling within six off a three-pointer by
Tyler Schmidt (SO, Le Sueur, Minn.) with 22 seconds remaining. The Gusties finished 8-of-8 from the free throw line in the final 40 seconds to put an end to the Augsburg come-back.
For the game, Augsburg connected on 40.0 percent (24-of-60) of its shots from the floor, while Gustavus hit 42.1 percent (24-of-57) of its shots. The teams finished with an identical 13 turnovers, but the Gusties claimed a 41-35 advantage on the boards. Augsburg outscored Gustavus 32-16 in points in the paint, but struggled at the free throw line only connecting on 5-of-12.
Augsburg and Gustavus both return to action Wednesday (1/19) with Augsburg hosting St. Mary's University and Gustavus hosting Bethel University.
