ROCK ISLAND, Ill. – Augustana got off to a great start Saturday at Carver Center and cruised to a 78-56 win over Millikin to move to 22-2 on the season and 14-1 in the CCIW. The fourth-ranked Vikings clinched their fifth consecutive conference title in outright fashion on Senior Night. The Big Blue dropped to 10-11 on the year and 4-10 in league

play.
 
Coach Grey Giovanine's outfit played like a well-oiled machine for the first 24 minutes of the contest.  One of the four senior honorees, Brett Benning (Dakota HS, Davis, Ill.), scored Augustana's first seven points. His short jumper broke a five-all tie and sparked a 12-0 Viking run. A Lucas Simon (Notre Dame HS, Chicago, Ill.) three-pointer capped the spree and gave the hosts a 17-5 advantage at 13:13 of the first half.
 
Millikin whittled the deficit back under double digits for a while, but consecutive three-pointers by Simon and Jack Jelen (Bay HS, Bay Village, Ohio) bumped the lead to 33-16 with 4:36 left in the half. A conventional three-point play by Donovan Ferguson (Downers Grove South HS, Darien, Ill.) at the 1:15 mark pushed the margin past 20 (41-20) and Chrishawn Orange (Jacobs HS, Algonquin, Ill.) hit a trey just before the halftime buzzer to give Augustana a 44-22 edge at intermission.
 
The Vikings were outstanding on both ends in the first 20 minutes. They shot .516 (16-31) from the field and .615 (8-13) from three-point range and committed just one turnover while holding the Big Blue to .333 (8-24) shooting from the floor, including just one of four (.250) from beyond the arc.
 
Ferguson threw down a dunk off a beautiful lob from Ebel on the opening possession of the second half and when Austin Elledge (Highland HS, Highland, Ill.) drilled a three-pointer with 16:08 to play, Augustana had its biggest lead of the night at 56-28.
 
Millikin answered with a 12-0 run over the next seven minutes to get as close as 56-40 with nine minutes to play. A pair of Pierson Wofford (Springfield Lutheran HS, Springfield, Ill.) free throws ended the Viking drought and by the 6:15 mark, they had built the lead back to 24 (68-44) following a conventional three-point play by Orange.
 
The Big Blue made one more push, as Jack Marinko scored five points in a 10-1 run that made it 69-54 with two minutes left. That was as close as Millikin had been since 2:45 of the first half. A pair of free throws by Joe Kellen (Rockford Lutheran HS, Rockford, Ill.) stemmed the tide and Nolan Ebel (Regis Jesuit HS, Denver, Colo.) and Orange each scored in transition to push the margin back over 20. Giovanine's four seniors—Orange, Ebel, Benning and Kellen—exited to a standing ovation with 35 seconds left.
 
Orange, who played in the 100th victory of his career, led Augustana with 12 points and seven rebounds. Benning finished with 11 points and Ebel, Wofford and Elledge 10 each. Simon dished out a team-high four assists. Wofford had three steals and Ferguson a pair of blocked shots. Davante Harrell, with a dozen points, was the only Millikin player in double digits.
 
The Vikings finished the night 27 of 59 (.458) from the field, 10 of 25 (.400) from three-point range and 14 of 21 (.667) at the foul line. They limited the Big Blue to .385 shooting (20-52) from the floor and .222 (2-9) from long range. Millikin hit 14 of 16 (.875) free throws and won the rebound battle by a 38-33 margin, but committed 16 turnovers to just nine for Augustana.
 
Giovanine's club will wrap up regular season play on Saturday, February 16 at Carthage. A win over the Red Men would give the Vikings the first 15-1 mark in the CCIW since 1991.