The Carthage College men's basketball team (8-9, 2-4 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin) ended a brutal, three-game road stretch on Saturday, Jan. 21, with an 90-70 loss to CCIW-opponent and No. 19 Augustana College (Ill., 13-4, 3-3 CCIW) at the Roy J. Carver Center in Rock Island, Ill. 

Carthage opened the three-game stretch on Saturday, Jan. 14 with a 69-61 loss at No. 25 Illinois Wesleyan University before falling at No. 22 Wheaton College (Ill.), 79-73, this past Tuesday, Jan. 18.  The Red Men are currently in sixth place in the league.

Augustana jumped out to a 15-6 lead at 11:25 first half. Carthage pulled to within a point on two occasions, 21-20 at 7:42 and 23-22 at 6:22, before the Vikings used an 11-0 run to open up a 12-point lead, 34-22, at 4:13.  The Augustana lead went to 18 points, 47-29, just as the half ended on a three-pointer by Mark Roth.  The Vikings out-scored the Red Men, 24-7, in the final 6:22 of the first half.  Augustana bumped its lead to 21 points early in the second half, 58-37, at 16:21.  The Vikings led by as much as 26 points, 75-49, at 8:02 and went on to win by 20 points, 90-70.

Augustana shot 59 percent (35-59), including 11-of-22 from three-point range, while Carthage shot 57 percent (28-49), including five-of-15 three-pointers.  The Vikings converted nine-of-13 from the free-throw line, while the Red Men went nine-of-10 from the charity stripe.  Augustana had a 27-21 rebounding edge, with the Red Men turning the ball over 16 times to nine turnovers and 29 assists for the Vikings. 

Four Augustana starters scored in double figures, with Troy Rorer leading the way with 17 points on six-of-nine field goals, two-of-three three-pointers and three-of-three free throws, along with eight assists.  Mark Roth scored 15 points on five-of-nine shooting, all from three-point range.  Bryant Voiles had 14 points on seven-of-11 field goals, along with eight assists, and Brian DeSimone added 12 points on five-of-six shooting, including two-of-two three-pointers.

Three Carthage players scored in double figures.  Reese Herth (Fr., Morton Grove, Ill./Skokie-Niles West) came off the bench to score 17 points on seven-of-11 field goals, including two-of-five from three-point range.  Malcom Kelly (Jr., Kenosha, Wis./Reuther) had 13 points on four-of-six shooting, two-of-two three-pointers and three-of-three free throws, along with four assists.  Max Cary (Sr., Geneva, Ill.) chipped in 12 points on five-of-six field goals.

"We didn't play very well early and fell behind from the get-go," said Carthage coach Bosko Djurickovic.  "Augustana's run at the end of the first half was fueled by our lack of attention to detail.  We didn't compete at the best level of this conference.  This was a game that Augustana desperately needed to win, and they took it to us from the beginning to the end.  It wasn't lack of effort on our part, and the team that deserved to win won the game.  We lost track of Mark Roth four or five times in the first half, and he took advantage of his opportunities.  Give them credit.  They needed the win, and they got it. They played with much more of a comfort level than we did, and that's not usually the case when we play them.  At this stage, every game becomes a 'must-win' for us, and that starts with Elmhurst on Tuesday."

Carthage plays host to CCIW-opponent Elmhurst College (9-8, 3-3 CCIW) on Tuesday, Jan. 24 in a 7:30 p.m. game at Tarble Arena in Kenosha, Wis.