Box Score

CHICAGO, Ill. – Uncharacteristically struggling at free throw line, Augustana fell at North Park by a score of 87-82 in overtime on Saturday, February 18 in Chicago. The loss prevented the Vikings from clinching a third straight outright College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin title.
 
Head coach Grey Giovanine's team clinched at least a tie for its third straight CCIW title last Saturday night but the Vikings were hoping to grab the trophy outright with a win at North Park. A less than stellar performance at the free throw line put a damper on those chances.
 
Augustana, which came into the game shooting at a crisp .775 from the charity stripe, only connected on 14 of 29 (.483) and it was worse in the first half when the Vikings hit on just six of 15 (.400). In a game that was tied at the end of  regulation 68-68, those misses were crucial.
 
North Park used a 15-0 run in the first half to gain control early in the game. After a conventional three-point play by freshman Micah Martin (Iowa City HS, Iowa City, Iowa) at 10:05 gave the Vikings a 21-20 lead, they would not score again until just 6:44 remained before halftime when sophomore Nolan Ebel (Regis Jesuit HS, Denver, Colo.) connected on one of two free throws.
 
Before Ebel went to the foul line, the North Park lead was 14 (35-21). The Vikings battled back, however and by halftime the margin was down to eight (37-29) after sophomore Chrishawn Orange (Jacobs HS, Algonquin, Ill.) hit two free throws with :38 left.
 
In the second half North Park got the advantage into double digits (41-31) in the early going (18:55) but a three-point play by senior Jacob Johnston (Erie HS, Cordova, Ill.) with 2:00 left tied things at 67-67. Orange made one of two free throws at 1:12 to put the Vikings ahead 68-67 but North Park's Juwan Henry made one of two charity tosses with :21 left to tie it at 68-68. The Vikings got a good look at a three from junior Dylan Sortillo (Bettendorf HS, Bettendorf, Iowa) at the buzzer but the shot failed to fall.
 
In the overtime, North Park scored 10 of the first 11 points to take a 79-69 lead with 2:14 left and that deficit was too big for the Vikings to overcome.
 
Johnston led the way for Augustana with 22 points on 10 of 16 shooting and he also had six rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot. Orange scored 18 points and hauled in a team-high nine rebounds. Martin was in double figures in scoring with 11 and he also had eight rebounds. The Vikings not only struggled at the free throw line but also connected on just six of 23 (.261) from three point range.
 
Colin Lake led North Park in scoring with 26 points while T.J. Cobbs had 19 and Juwan Henry dropped in 15. Jordan Robinson scored 14 and pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds. North Park was a sizzling .550 (11-20) from three point range.
 
Augustana is now 18-6 on the season and 11-4 in the CCIW and the Vikings can clinch the league title outright with a win at Illinois Wesleyan on Tuesday, February 21. If they win then, they will host the CCIW Tournament for the third straight year, and the sixth time overall, beginning on Friday, February 24.