DULUTH, Minn. – The Augsburg University men's basketball team returned to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Thursday evening, earning a 70-48 victory over the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth.

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Augsburg 70, St. Scholastica 48
LOCATION: Reif Gymnasium, Duluth, Minn.
RECORDS: Augsburg 4-8 overall (2-5 MIAC), St. Scholastica 3-8 overall (2-4 MIAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
• Augsburg dominated the opening minutes of the contest, quickly jumping out to a 9-0 lead less than five minutes into the game. Augsburg remained in control for a majority of the first half, leading by as many as 13 and taking a 32-23 lead into the locker room at halftime.
• After the Saints cut the deficit to just five at 42-37 with 13:40 to play, the Auggies took complete control of the game and outscored St. Scholastica 28-11 the rest of the way to secure the 22-point victory.
• Will Blascziek (SO, Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North HS) matched his career-high to lead the Auggies with 17 points on 5-11 shooting, also adding a team-high four steals and three rebounds. Conner Knoepfle (SR, Andover, Minn./Andover HS) scored 12 points on 5-12 from the floor while grabbing three rebounds and a steal. Nick Hendler (JR, Shakopee, Minn./Holy Family Catholic HS) reached double figures for the first time in his career with 11 points on an extremely efficient 3-4 shooting from the floor and added six rebounds.
• Kayser Hasaan (FY, Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview HS) and Bradley Winter (SR, Winona, Minn./Winona HS) tied for the team lead with seven rebounds each, also adding nine and seven points, respectively.
• The Auggies held a significant advantage in shooting percentage, hitting 25 of their 58 attempts (43.1%) while St. Scholastica made just 19 of its 56 shots (33.9%). The Auggies also outrebounded the Saints by a margin of 40-27 and outscored them 13-4 on fast-break opportunities.

FOR THE FOES
• Nick Carlson was the offensive leader for the Saints with 12 points and five rebounds while Kevin Thomas finished with eight points and six rebounds.

UP NEXT
• The Auggies will return home to host Hamline University on Saturday, January 7 at 1 pm as the first game of an afternoon doubleheader with the women's team.