KENOSHA, Wis. -- The Augustana Vikings men's basketball team was defeated on the road on Saturday, falling to the Carthage Firebirds by a score of 85-78 on the road.

The Firebirds got off to a fast start, scoring 15 of the game's first 17 points for the early double-digit advantage. Trailing by 13 a few moments later, the Vikings stormed back, using a 17-5 run to pull within a point at 24-23. Carthage responded with 10 unanswered of their own to push the margin back out to double figures, eventually taking an 11-point lead into the halftime break. The Vikings shot 44 percent from both the field and behind the arc in the opening 20 minutes, while the home team put up a 47 percent mark, while hitting 31 percent of their attempts from downtown.

Carthage's advantage grew to 15 just three minutes into the second half and eventually cushioned it to as many as 20 halfway through the second half. Augie cut the differential in half over the course of the next five minutes, facing a 73-63 deficit with just over five minutes to play. Anthony Cooper notched seven of his career-best 23 points during the run to pull the Vikings within striking distance. 

Augustana successfully trimmed the margin under double digits, cutting it to as close as eight, but ran out of time as the final score pointed in Carthage's favor by that number. Cooper and Daniel Carr both notched 20-point efforts for the Vikings, with Carr one behind Cooper at 22 to go with his 14 rebounds. Matt Hanushewsky added 12 points and three assists. 

With the loss, Augie drops to 2-8 on the season and 1-3 in CCIW action. The team will remain on the road for their next contest on Monday, December 19 when they visit Knox.