Men's Basketball 2/18/09 -- Augsburg 70, Carleton 54
MINNEAPOLIS (2/18/09) -- Augsburg College's Ben Flavin (FY, Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North HS) led his squad with a career-high 22 points and a game-high four assists in a key 70-54 victory over Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men's basketball rival Carleton College at Si Melby Hall on Wednesday night.
Augsburg (14-10 overall, 12-7 MIAC) was led by Flavin's 22 points, which included a 4-for-8 performance from beyond the three-point arc. Nate Alm (SR, Eden Prairie, Minn.) posted his ninth double-double of the season, recording 11 points and a game-high 12 rebounds, while Jon Cassens (JR, Prior Lake, Minn.) added 15 points and seven rebounds.
Carleton (16-8 overall, 12-7 MIAC) was led by Zach Johnson (SR, Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview HS), who recorded a double-double, posting 12 points and 11 rebounds. Also scoring in double-figures for the Knights was Bryan Rosett (JR, Cottage Grove, Minn./Park HS) and Kellan McLemore (FY, Aurora, Colo./Rangeview HS), who scored 14 and 11 points, respectively.
The Auggies took a 5-0 lead to start the game, but Carleton came back with an 11-0 run to take a six-point lead at the 14:08 mark. Augsburg whittled away the Carleton lead and tied things up at 16-16 off a layup by Alm with just under 10 minutes to play. The Auggies regained the lead 23-22 with 5:19 left to play. Flavin nailed a three-pointer with four seconds remaining to take a 34-26 lead into the locker room at the half.
Augsburg scored the opening basket of the second half to claim the first double-digit lead of the night. The Auggies took advantage of key shooting opportunities to grow their lead to 61-46 with 3:20 left to play. Augsburg converted on their free-throw opportunities down the stretch to post the convincing win.
For the game, Augsburg had its third-best shooting performance of the season, converting on 49.1 percent (27-of-55) from the floor, while the Knights shot 35.6 percent (21-of-59). The Auggies claimed a 42-27 advantage on the boards and outscored the Carleton bench 31-5.
Augsburg returns to action on Saturday (2/21), when it travels to Winona to take on St. Mary's University in a men's and women's doubleheader. Women's action begins at 1 p.m. and the men tip off at 3 p.m.
