Augsburg 86, Yellowjackets 74
Box Score
Coming off a big win over Northland College in their opener on Thursday, the UW-Superior men's basketball team fully expected a tougher game from the Augsburg Auggies Monday night.
And unfortunately for the Yellowjackets, the Auggies proved to be too tough, getting a big game from point guard Parker Hines and balanced scoring up and down the lineup in an 86-74 victory over UW-Superior at Mertz Mortorelli Gymnasium.
For their part, the Yellowjackets carried plenty of offensive balance of their own with four players scoring in double-figures led by Johnquez Brooks (Las Vegas, Nev.) with 18 points
But the Auggies outscored the Yellowjackets 26-7 from the free throw line on the way to dropping UW-Superior to 1-1 on the season.
Augsburg took an early lead in the first half as Tyler Schmidt knocked down a jumper and Noah Veach connected on two free throws for a 4-0 Auggies lead just 1:15 into the opening frame.
UW-Superior evened matters at 4-4 with 17:45 remaining in the opening half on layups from Bronson Byrne (Chanhassen, Minn./Chaska) and Brendan Bauer (Eleva, Wis./Gilmanton).
The Auggies (1-0) would score the next five points to take a 9-4 lead on a Hines free throw with 16:26 left on the clock.
A jumper by Brooks brought the Yellowjackets to within 11-9 with 15:47 remaining in the opening 20 minutes.
Augsburg increased their lead over the next 10 minutes, taking their largest lead of the half at 36-23 on a three-pointer by Hines with 5:50 left.
The Yellowjackets managed to trim the deficit to 44-39 at the intermission behind three points from Jarrod Peterson (Plymouth, Minn./Wayzata), a three-pointer by Trent Davis (Apple Valley, Minn./St. Bernard's) and a layup by Bauer in the final 3:20 of the half.
UW-Superior closed the gap further early in the second half, slicing the deficit to 44-41 when Bauer made a short jumper with 19:34 remaining in regulation.
The Yellowjackets got no closer however as Augsburg pulled away, taking a 58-44 lead on a layup by Hines with 12:46 left in the second half.
From there, the Yellowjackets would get no closer than nine points as the Auggies knocked down seven free throws in the final 1:28 to seal the victory.
Along with Brooks' 18 points, Peterson added 16 points while Byrne added 15 points and Bauer 10 for the Yellowjackets.
Hines led all scorers with 23 points while Schmidt added 16 points. Kornbaum chipped in with 15 points for the Auggies with Brett Rasmussen finishing with 11 points and Veach 10.
The Yellowjackets host Concordia-Moorhead at the Merrill Thompson Classic on Saturday. Opening tipoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. The game can be heard locally on 91.3 FM KUWS. Matt Johnson will be on the call.