Men's Basketball 1/12/02 -- St. Olaf 86, Augsburg 65 

BOXSCORE

MINNEAPOLIS (1/12/02) -- Mike Ludwig (Jr., Blaine, Minn.) scored 21 points and had five blocked shots, as St. Olaf College cruised to an 86-65 rout of host Augsburg College in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men's basketball game Saturday afternoon at Augsburg's Si Melby Hall.

In improving to 7-7 overall and 3-6 in MIAC play, St. Olaf had a solid shooting night, hitting 51.7 percent (31-of-60) from the field, including 59 percent (20-of-34) in the first half, as the Oles built a 47-39 halftime lead.

Meanwhile, Augsburg was limited to 31.9 percent from the field (22-of-69), including a paltry 18.9 percent (7-of-37) in the second half. Augsburg went 0-for-14 from three-point range in the second half, scoring just 5-of-24 (20.8 percent) from beyond the arc in the game.

With the loss, Augsburg dropped to 6-7 overall and 2-6 in the MIAC. The Auggies have lost their last six games in a row and seven of their last eight games, after starting the season 5-0.

Ten Oles scored, with five in double figures. Justin Bonestroo (Jr., Stillwater, Minn.) scored 15 points and had six rebounds, and Matt Schlenker (So., Rochester, Minn./Mayo HS) had 10 points, a game-high nine rebounds and five assists. Cory Paterson (So., Minnetonka, Minn./Hopkins HS) had 11 points and five rebounds, and Tim Nelson (Jr., Braham, Minn.) came off the bench to contribute 13 points, five assists and three steals. Kevin Jaunich (Jr., Delano, Minn.) had seven assists.

The Oles used a 9-2 run to take a 18-11 lead midway through the first half, but the Auggies stormed back to eventually take their last lead of the game, 31-29, with 7:44 left in the half. St. Olaf closed the first half with a 10-2 run to lead 47-39. A 14-3 run in the first seven minutes of the second half gave the Oles a commanding 61-42 lead, a margin the Oles built to as many as 24 points down the stretch.

Adam Kotewa (Jr., Mankato, Minn./West HS) led Augsburg with 10 points, while Nick Peters (Jr., St. Peter, Minn./Nicollet HS) had nine points and Trevor Overskei (Jr., Roseville, Minn.) had seven points and six assists.

Augsburg plays at Bethel in its next MIAC contest on Monday (1/14) at 7:30 p.m., while St. Olaf returns to MIAC play on Wednesday (1/16) at 7:30 p.m., with a game at crosstown rival Carleton in Northfield, Minn.