Crookston, Minn. -- Augustana shot 28 free throws in the second half, outscoring the Golden Eagles by three in the final 20 minutes to pull away from Minnesota Crookston on a blustery Saturday afternoon, 85-77.
Minnesota Crookston falls to 3-14.
Augustana would score the first five points of the night, but the Golden Eagles would answer with six straight points from Donez Lindsey (Fr., G, Stockton, Calif.), Brayden Carlson (So., C, Woodbury, Minn.) and Spencer Swenson (Fr., F, Sauk Rapids, Minn.).
Eight minutes into the first half, Augustana would take a 14-12 lead, but Kazadi Mukoma, Jr. (Jr., Grand Island, Neb.) would finish a tough layup to tie the game up.
Augie would take their largest lead of the night up to that point at seven, but five straight points, capped off by a Lindsey three, would cut the Golden Eagle deficit to just two.
Augustana would lead by five heading into the halftime break.
For a majority of the second half, it would be much like the first half where both teams would trade buckets. Augustana would lead by six early on but the Golden Eagles would cut the lead to 40-38 on another Lindsey bucket.
Augustana would take their first double-digit lead of the game at 58-48, but Lindsey would answer with a left wing three to cut the Viking lead to seven.
J.D. Roberts (Jr., F, Parkville, Mo.) would score five straight points to cut the deficit to just four with 8:30 remaining, but Augustana would later extend their lead to 11 at 71-60.
Minnesota Crookston would get some stops and eventually make it a six point game at 73-67, but couldn't keep Augustana off the free throw line for the eight point victory for Augustana.
Minnesota Crookston got outstanding performances from a pair of freshmen, as Lindsey finished with 23 points on 9-18 from the field, while Swenson poured in a career-high 22 points off the bench. Mukoma, Jr., finished the night with 14 points and nine rebounds.
Minnesota Crookston's game against Wayne State College for tomorrow has been postponed to a later date due to weather.
