Box Score

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. – Unlike Friday's 16-0 start against Calvin, nothing came easy Saturday, but Augustana used solid defense and a yeoman-like effort on the boards to down Alma 65-53 at Carver Center. Coach Grey Giovanine's second-ranked Vikings moved to 3-0 on the season heading into an exhibition date at the University of Illinois on Wednesday, November 22. The visiting Scots dropped to 0-2 on the year.
 
Junior Pierson Wofford (Springfield Lutheran HS, Springfield, Ill.) started the game with a layup and two free throws to put Augustana up 4-0 two minutes in and the Vikings would lead for the rest of the half. A Nolan Ebel (Regis Jesuit HS, Denver, Colo.) three-pointer at the 10:34 mark pushed the margin into double digits for the first time at 17-7 and Micah Martin's (Iowa City HS, Iowa City, Iowa) bucket at 4:35 gave the Vikings their biggest lead of the half at 26-14. Alma's Kevin Scheibert scored with 21 seconds left to pull the Scots to within 27-19 at the break.
 
It was a struggle for both teams at the offensive end, with Augustana hitting just 10 of 32 (.313) from the field in the half and Alma just seven of 29 (.241).
 
A Dylan Sortillo (Bettendorf HS, Bettendorf, Iowa) jumper with 18:12 to play gave the hosts their biggest lead of the night at 32-19, but Alma had five different players score in a 13-2 run that trimmed the deficit to 34-32 with 15 minutes to play.
 
Lucas Simon (Notre Dame HS, Chicago, Ill.) hit a jumper and scored in transition off a feed from Ebel to stem the tide temporarily, but the Scots kept coming, eventually forging the first tie (38-38) since 0-0 on a Preston Laketa three-pointer with 11:57 left.
 
There would be ties at 40 and 42 as well and with 10:47 to play Scheibert had a chance to give Alma its first lead when he went to the line for a one-and-one. He missed the front end however and when Benning answered with a pair of free throws, Augustana had the lead for good.
 
A Ryan Stevens field goal pulled Alma to within 47-46 at the 8:25 mark, but Sortillo and Martin responded with consecutive buckets and it wouldn't be a one-possession game again the rest of the way. Benning's three-pointer with 5:31 remaining pushed the lead back to double digits at 58-46 and although the Scots would get as close as seven points, three Ebel free throws and a baseline jumper by Chrishawn Orange (Jacobs HS, Algonquin, Ill.) accounted for the final.
 
Benning came off the bench for 15 points, six rebounds and two assists in 22 minutes. Ebel finished with 12 points, five assists and five rebounds and Orange with 11 points and seven boards. Wofford and Sortillo, held to eight and six points, respectively, led the way on the boards. Sortillo grabbed 10 and Wofford's 18 were the most by a Viking since Chandlor Collins' 20 in 2009.
 
Augustana won the battle of the boards by a huge 54-34 margin and committed 13 turnovers while forcing 17. Both teams struggled shooting from the field. The Vikings finished 23 of 68 (.338) and Alma 19 of 55 (.345). The Scots were more proficient from beyond the arc, hitting eight of 21 (.381) compared to four of 14 (.286) for Coach Grey Giovanine's bunch, but the hosts were better from the foul line, converting 15 of 20 (.750), while Alma was just seven for 11 (.636).
 
Augustana travels to Champaign, Illinois for a contest with the University of Illinois on Wednesday, November 22. The Vikings and Illini are scheduled to tip off at State Farm Arena at 6:00 p.m.