NORTHFIELD, Minn. -- Surviving a furious comeback by the hosts in the final six minutes of play, the Augsburg University men's basketball team claimed a 71-70 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory at St. Olaf College on Saturday afternoon.

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Augsburg 71, St. Olaf 70
LOCATION: Si Melby Hall, Minneapolis
RECORDS: Augsburg 10-12 overall (6-7 MIAC), St. Olaf 2-19 overall (1-11 MIAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
• The game was a tale of two halves, as Augsburg used a 17-5 run late in the first half to take a 45-25 lead at the break, a lead expanded to 23 points early in the second half. But St. Olaf outscored the Auggies by a 45-26 margin in the second half, cutting the lead to 71-70 with 23 seconds left. The Oles had a pair of chances to score in the final seconds, but both shots missed and the Auggies survived with the victory.
• Andy Stafford (SR, Hopkins, Minn./Hopkins HS) led the Auggies in scoring, with 18 points and four rebounds.
• Trent Gomez (SO, Two Harbors, Minn./Two Harbors HS) scored 17 points with three rebounds, three steals and two assists.
• Elias Batala (SO, Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview HS) scored nine point with four steals and three assists.
• Will Blascziek (SR, Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North HS) and Julien Hussherr (JR, Strasbourg, Alsace, France/Episcopal Saint Etienne HS) scored seven points each.

FOR THE FOES
• Kobe Kirk led the Oles with 19 points and six rebounds, while Addison Metcalf scored 15 points.
• AJ Uhl had a double-double, with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

UP NEXT
• Augsburg travels to Winona, Minn., to take on Saint Mary's University on Wednesday (2/12) at 7:30 p.m.