MINNEAPOLIS -- The Augsburg University men's basketball team utilized the quickness and shooting abilities of its guards to post an important 94-88 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory over Gustavus Adolphus College on Wednesday evening at Si Melby Hall.

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Augsburg 94, Gustavus Adolphus 88
LOCATION: Si Melby Hall, Minneapolis, Minn.
RECORDS: Augsburg 16-6 overall (12-5 MIAC), Gustavus 10-13 overall (7-11 MIAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
• Down the stretch, Augsburg went to a five-guard offense, not subbing for the final 14:46 of the game. The Auggie guards were able to hit big shots when called upon and were able to hold off a solid Gustavus squad with 4-for-4 shooting from the free-throw line in the final 26 seconds.
• Booker Coplin (JR, Shakopee, Minn./Shakopee HS) had a monster game for the Auggies, finishing with 35 points and 11 rebounds, his ninth double-double of the season and 14th of his Auggie career. Coplin was 13-of-19 from the field, including a 5-for-8 effort from beyond the arc -- his fourth game this season, and fifth in his career, hitting five 3-pointers.
• Another outstanding effort from Martin Mitchell (JR, Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview HS) produced 20 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field, while adding a season-high six rebounds.
• For the second consecutive game, Matt Carik (SO, Rogers, Minn./Rogers HS) dished out a game-high eight assists, while adding 15 points on a 6-for-11 shooting night. Kevin McKiernan (SR, Savage, Minn./Prior Lake HS) added five assists and four rebounds for Augsburg.
• Also finishing in double figures for the Auggies was Henry Mulligan (JR, Iowa City, Iowa/Iowa City HS), who finished with 14 points, while adding a pair of assists and rebounds.
• The Auggies have offensively had some of their best efforts of the season against the Gusties, with two of Augsburg's three top shooting performances of the year coming against Gustavus. The Auggies shot 53.4 percent (31-of-58) from the floor, while Gustavus connected on 50.7 percent (35-of-69) of its shot attempts. Augsburg finished 21-of-26 from the free-throw line, while the Gusties were 11-of-15. Gustavus posted a 36-29 advantage on the boards.

BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
• Wednesday's 35-point effort was Coplin's seventh 30-plus-point game of the season, second in a row and fifth in his last 10 games. He has scored 20-plus points in 18-of-22 games this season and 23-of-51 games in his Augsburg career. He has now scored in double figures 42 times in his Augsburg career, and all 22 games this season.
• Mitchell's 20-point performance marked his second 20-plus-point game in his last three starts, his 12th double-digit scoring game of the year and eighth in his last 12 games.
• Carik recorded his 10th double-digit scoring game of the season, and had his 14th game, and ninth in his last 11 starts, with five or more assists.  

FOR THE FOES
• Gustavus was led by CJ Woda, who finished with 16 points, shooting 7-of-11 from the field.
• Spencer Tollefson and Marten Morem added 12 and 11 points respectively for the Gusties.

UP NEXT
• Augsburg returns to action on Saturday (2/9) at 3 p.m., traveling to St. Paul, Minn., for a key MIAC matchup at the University of St. Thomas.
• Gustavus returns to action on Wednesday (2/14) hosting Bethel University.