MINNEAPOLIS – Behind a career-high 23 points from Anja Smith (SO, Kewaskum, Wis./Saint Mary's Springs HS) and an explosive performance in the second quarter, the Augsburg University women's basketball team defeated the Carleton Knights 72-45 on Saturday afternoon and moved to 4-0 in Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play this season.

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Augsburg def. Carleton 72-45
LOCATION: Si Melby Hall, Minneapolis, Minn.
RECORDS: Augsburg 4-3 overall (4-0 MIAC), Carleton 2-3 overall (1-2 MIAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
• The Auggies came out firing in the first quarter, grabbing a 15-6 lead at the 2:21 mark. At the end of the quarter, the Auggies led 17-10.
• The Augsburg offense exploded in the second quarter, scoring 28 while holding the Knights to just 10 to stretch the lead all the way to 25 at halftime.
• The Auggies were dominant in several statistical areas as they outscored Carleton 13-6 in second-chance points, won the battle in the paint 38-24, and doubled the Knights bench points 32-16.
• Augsburg's defense stifled the Knights all afternoon, holding Carleton to just 19-of-55 (34.5%) from the field and one-of-16 (6.3%) from deep in the game. The Auggies shot the ball well as they connected on 30 of their 51 attempts (58.8%) and went nine-of-19 (47.4%) from beyond the arc.
• The Auggies were the stronger team in nearly every statistical category as they outshot the Saints 41.3% to 37.9% and outscored them 24-10 off of turnovers, 24-10 in second-chance points, and 46-26 in the paint.
• Smith led the way for Augsburg with a career-high 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the floor to go along with four rebounds.
• Kalena Myers (SO, Burnsville, Minn./Apple Valley HS) also tied her career-high in points with 18 on seven-of-eight shooting along with three assists, a rebound, and a steal. Jen Masello (SR, Darien, Ill./Downers Grove South HS) was just one rebound shy of another double-double, recording 14 points with nine rebounds and a steal in the game.

BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
• Following Saturday's game, Masello now ranks second in the MIAC overall statistics rankings with 10.7 rebounds per-game and also sits third with 15.7 points per-game.
• The game marked the 79th matchup between the two teams all-time with Augsburg winning the last 19 matchups in a row.

FOR THE FOES
• Isabelle Henry was the scoring leader for the Knights with 13 points on five-of-10 shooting along with six steals and two rebounds.

UP NEXT
• Augsburg is now set to take on Gustavus at Si Melby Hall on Wednesday, Dec. 8 at 7 p.m.