BLOOMINGTON, Ill. -- The Augustana Vikings men's basketball team nearly made it two straight wins on the road against top ten teams on Saturday, but came up short against the No. 3 ranked Illinois Wesleyan Titans as they fell 83-78 from inside the Shirk Center.

Dan Carr scored a career-high 28 points to go with 14 rebounds, notching his fourth straight double double and 11th of the season as the upset-minded Vikings battled tough with the third-ranked Titans. Augie bounced back from an early nine-point deficit in the first half to eventually tie it before the Titans used a couple of late baskets to take a five-point lead into the halftime break. The five points proved to be the difference as the two teams played to a deadlock in the second half, with the Vikings cutting it to a one-possession game with under 30 seconds to go. Two late free throws from the Titans, followed by a defensive stop allowed them to hang on for the 83-78 victory.

"We really competed and really stayed together," said head coach Tom Jessee. "We came up just short on the road against a good team, but have to regroup quickly and play another good opponent on Monday at home."

The Vikings trailed by as many as 15 points on two separate occasions in the second half and found themselves in a double-digit deficit with four minutes remaining in the game. From there, a three-pointer from Matt Hanushewsky and mid-range jumper by Nate Ortiz, paired with three consecutive defense stops brought them within five with under two to play. Illinois Wesleyan responded with a made three-pointer out of a timeout to push it back out to eight. Five straight points from Hanushewsky and a long three from Carter Duwa eventually made it a one-possession game at 81-78, but the Vikings ran out of time as IWU converted two free throws to push it out of reach and escape with the win.

Hanushewsky had an efficient game for the Vikings, scoring 16 points to go with five rebounds, four assists, and zero turnovers. Nicolas Giliberto added 12 points, while Duwa had 10 off of the bench. Carr's 28 points came on 10-16 and 6-8 from behind the three-point line.

With the loss, Augie drops to 8-7 overall and 3-3 in the CCIW. The team returns home for three straight at the Carver Center, beginning Monday, January 17th against the North Central Cardinals. Tip is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.