AURORA, Ill. -- Five Vikings scored in double figures on Thursday as the Augustana men's basketball team picked up an 82-46 victory on the road over the Aurora Spartans to close out the 2021 calendar year. The 46 points are the fewest allowed by the Vikings this season and 24 points below the Spartans' season average.

It was an efficient start for the Vikings (6-6) in this one, jumping out to a double-digit lead at 15-4 just five minutes into the contest. Augie maintained the double figure advantage for a majority of the opening half, closing the frame on an 8-0 run to stretch it into a 19-point cushion at the break. Augustana held Aurora (3-7) scoreless for the last 5:46 of the first half and to just 35 percent shooting to start the game. The Spartans did not make a three-pointer (0-7) through 20 minutes.
 
The scoring run continued into the second half, seeing the 8-0 spurt turn into 17 unanswered points for the Vikings to push the score to 44-17 before Aurora converted a basket to end the nine-minute scoring drought. Augustana saw their lead grow to 28 on three different occasions throughout the game before the Spartans put together an 8-1 run with seven minutes remaining to give the home team some life. The Vikings countered with hot three-point shooting, hitting 5-9 in the second half after connecting on just 4-14 in the first. Augie pushed the margin to 30-plus during the final minutes of the game, resulting in the end score of 82-46.

Despite committing one more turnover than their counterpart, Augustana posted a 24-13 advantage in the points off turnovers category. The Vikings ended the game at 55 percent shooting and limited the Spartans to just 33 percent from the field and 1-19 from behind the three-point line. Augie committed just eight fouls in the game and was plus-13 in rebounds

"I absolutely loved how our guys competed today," said head coach Tom Jessee. "We played really well defensively and shared the ball exceptionally well on offense. It's a great team win."
 
Nicolas Giliberto led the balanced scoring attack for the Vikings, finishing with 13 points on 5-6 shooting. Nate Ortiz was next in line with 12 points, while Matt Hawkins ended 5-7 from the floor to tally 11. Dan Carr and Tyler Knuth each added 10. Carr also posted his seventh double double of the year after hauling in 13 boards.

With the win, Augustana improves to 6-6 on the season as they conclude non-conference action for the 2021-22 season. The Vikings will resume conference play on Wednesday, January 5 when they host the North Central Cardinals. Tip is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. from the Carver Center.