A major upset was in sight, but the Carthage College men's basketball team (5-8, 0-2 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin) fell short of CCIW-opponent and No. 19 Augustana College (Ill., 12-1, 2-0 CCOW), 68-56, on Saturday night, Jan. 5 at Tarble Arena in Kenosha, Wis.
The first half was a typical Carthage-Augustana slug fest. The Vikings led most of the way but not by much. Augustana's biggest lead was seven points, 8-1, in the opening minutes. The Red Men took over, 20-19, at 6:55 and led by five points at halftime, 30-25. Carthage made it a seven-point game, 32-25, with the first basket of the second half, but the lead dwindled from there. Augustana tied the contest, 36-36, at 15:29 and went ahead, to stay, 38-36, at 14:21 on a jumper by Griffin Pils. The Vikings inched away to a 10-point lead, 62-52, at 2:07, and the Red Men never got any closer than eight points down the stretch. Augustana went on to win by 12, 68-56.
Augustana shot 50 percent (12-26), including four-of-eight three-pointers, while Carthage shot 38 percent (21-56), including just two-of-15 from three-point range. The Red Men connected at just a 26 percent rate overall in the second half (8-31), while the Vikings hit on 55 percent (12-22) in the second period. Augustana got to the free-throw line 24 times and made 16, while Carthage connected on 12-of-16 free throws. The Vikings had a 35-30 rebounding advantage.
Three Augustana players scored in double figures. Ben Ryan led the way with 13 points. Brandon Kunz scored 12 points with a game-high eight rebounds, and Brandon Thompson added 10 points with five boards and three assists. Reese Herth (So., Morton Grove, Ill./Skokie-Niles West) led the Red Men with a game-high 15 points on five-of12- field goals, along with four-of-four free throws and five rebounds. Mitch Thompson (Sr., Orland Park, Ill./Sandburg) had 11 points, also on five-of-12 shooting, along with six rebounds and four blocked shots.
"Our preparation was excellent for this game," said Carthage coach Bosko Djurickovic, "and we gave ourselves a chance to win the game. In the first half, everything we tried to do went well. In the second half, it was just execution. We showed an inability to make plays when it mattered, and Augustana made the plays. Just a few little things that we missed were the difference. We also didn't shoot the three-pointer well at all, and that's happened a few times in the past few weeks. We got out-rebounded in the second half, and it's tough to beat good team when that happens. Augustana is not overly pretty or even overly 'wow,' but they are so good at limiting mistakes, being where there need to be and wearing opponents down with physical play. We're an OK basketball team, but Augustana is a very good basketball team. North Central on Wednesday will be every bit as tough as this game. They are quality. They share the ball well, they assist the ball, and they do some things really well.
Center Luke Johnson (So., Naperville, Ill./West Chicago-Wheaton Academy, 13.0 points per game, 6.6 rebounds) left the team in early-January and is no longer enrolled at Carthage.
"Luke Johnson is a talented basketball player," said Carthage coach Bosko Djurickovic, "but like so many kids of today, he lives in a different world. He sees himself as an NBA player. He sees himself as an NCAA Division I player, and he thinks this move is the best way to achieve those goals."
Carthage plays host to CCIW-opponent and No. 11 North Central College (13-0, 2-0 CCIW) on Wednesday, Jan. 9 in a 7:30 p.m. game, also at Tarble Arena .