Box Score

KENOSHA, Wis. – Augustana jumped in front by 20 points after 16 minutes of play Saturday, but Carthage battled back and eventually downed the Vikings 74-70 in overtime at Tarble Arena. The 16th-ranked Vikings had an eight-game winning streak snapped, falling to 15-4 overall and into a tie for first place in the CCIW at 8-2. The Red Men improved to 13-6 overall and 6-4 in the conference.
 
Jacob Johnston (Erie HS, Cordova, Ill.) and Nolan Ebel (Regis Jesuit HS, Denver, Colo.) opened the game with consecutive three-pointers and an early 6-0 Augustana lead. The advantage reached double digits (14-4 ) on a Micah Martin (Iowa City HS, Iowa City, Iowa) free throw at the 11:49 mark of the first half.
 
Five different Vikings scored in a 14-1 run that ballooned the margin to 34-14 with 3:58 to play before halftime. However, Carthage began whittling away and Kevin Kozil's two free throws with six seconds left drew the Red Men to within 36-24 at the break.
 
Johnston opened the second half with another trey, but the hosts wouldn't go away. They outscored Augustana 27-12 over the next 11 minutes, drawing even at 51-all on a Brad Perry tip-in with 7:55 left in regulation.
 
It looked as though the Vikings would be able to hold Carthage off when a Johnston layup with 2:36 left gave the visitors a 64-58 lead, but a Jordan Thomas layup, a Brad Kruse put-back and a Mike Stevenson layup pulled the Red Men to within 66-64 with 50 seconds left. After an Augustana turnover, Stevenson slipped free on an inbounds play under the basket and tallied the tying bucket with eight seconds left.
 
In overtime, Kienan Baltimore's conventional three-point play with 1:34 remaining snapped a 68-68 tie and Carthage would lead the rest of the way. With his team up 73-70, Kozil missed a pair of free throws with 20 seconds left, but Chrishawn Orange's (Jacobs HS, Algonquin, Ill.) potential game-tying three with three seconds left was off the mark.
 
Johnston led the Vikings with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Junior Dylan Sortillo (Bettendorf HS, Bettendorf, Iowa) had 13 points and Orange added a dozen. Augustana shot just .386 (22-57) from the field, including .333 (13-39) inside the arc. The Vikings did hit nine of 18 (.500) three-point and 17 of 24 (.708) free throw attempts and won the battle of the boards 43-38, but were plagued by 22 turnovers.
 
Coach Grey Giovanine's club will look to rebound when it travels to Wheaton on Wednesday, February 1. Tipoff at King Arena is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.