DULUTH, Minn. – Will Blascziek (JR, Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North HS) scored 19 of his 24 points in the second half, sparking an Augsburg University comeback from a 17-point first-half deficit in a 77-73 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men's basketball victory at the College of St. Scholastica on Wednesday evening.

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Augsburg 77, St. Scholastica 73
LOCATION: Reif Gym, Duluth, Minn.
RECORDS: Augsburg 3-2 overall (1-1 MIAC), St. Scholastica 1-3 overall (0-1 MIAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
• Augsburg trailed 42-28 at halftime and 52-37 three minutes into the second half, but used a 14-1 run, with Blascziek scoring eight points, to cut the Saints' advantage to 53-51 with 11:45 left to play. A subsequent 10-0 run gave the Auggies their first lead of the game, 63-59 with 7:44 left. Tied 67-67 with 4:03 left, Augsburg took the lead to stay on a Blascziek jumper with 3:38 remaining, and outscored the Saints by a 10-6 margin down the stretch for the four-point victory.
• For the second straight game, Augsburg clinched the victory at the free-throw line. Augsburg connected on 81.5 percent (22-of-27) at the charity stripe, including hitting 18-of-20 (90 percent) in the second half, compared to just 7-of-14 (50 percent) for the Saints in the game. Blascziek connected on 9-of-9 from the free-throw line in the game, including hitting 7-of-7 in the second half, and added five rebounds in the win.
• Augsburg outrebounded St. Scholastica by a 40-38 margin.
• Elias Batala (FY, Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview HS) scored 14 points, his second straight double-digit scoring effort in his first five collegiate games, while Colin Meade (SR, Rochester, Minn./Lourdes HS) scored 11 points with five rebounds and two assists.
• Isaac Rabaey (JR, Hastings, Minn./Hastings HS) came off the bench to score nine points with 10 rebounds. Jalen Dearring (JR, Minneapolis, Minn./Hopkins HS) scored nine points, and Austin Jentzen (FY, Brooklyn Park, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville HS) scored six points with four rebounds. Trent Gomez (FY, Two Harbors, Minn./Two Harbors HS) contributed seven rebounds and two steals.

FOR THE FOES
• Noah Winesett scored 20 points with six rebounds and two assists to lead St. Scholastica.
• Coming off the bench for the Saints, Moe Washington scored 16 points, and Koy Nelson scored 12 points with four assists, four rebounds and two steals.

UP NEXT
• Augsburg hosts Gustavus Adolphus College in an MIAC game on Saturday (12/2) at 3 p.m. at Si Melby Hall.