ELMHURST, Ill. -- The Augustana Vikings men's basketball team saw their season come to an end on Tuesday, falling in the opening round of the CCIW Tournament to the No. 3 seed and 19th-ranked Elmhurst Bluejays by a score of 81-63.

A slow start from the Vikings on offense, mixed with a hot-shooting start for the Bluejays, dug Augie an early hole as they faced an 18-point deficit at halftime. The Vikings hit just 33 percent of their shots in the opening 20 minutes, while the home team connected on 52 percent of their looks. With the score sitting at 8-7, the Bluejays pulled away with a 9-1 run, eventually growing their first-half margin to as many as 21 before leading 45-27 at the break. 

On the scoreboard, the two teams played to an even tie in the second half, but Augustana was unable to get within striking distance as the differential dipped below the 18-point deficit just once. The Bluejays cushioned their advantage early on in the second half, pushing it to 26 five minutes and maintaining that margin at the halfway point. The Vikings strung together a late run to trim the final margin, but the final score resulted in the 18-point differential it saw at intermission.

Augustana out-shot Elmhurst in the game after holding the home team to 27 percent in the second half. The Bluejays did their damage at the free-throw line, ending the night 29-34 from the stripe to make it a plus-15 advantage in that category. Both teams struggled shooting the ball from behind the arc, each hitting less than 25 percent of their attempts. Elmhurst posted a plus-nine advantage on the boards.

Dan Carr concluded his all-conference junior campaign with his 18th double double of the season, finishing with 25 points and 12 rebounds. He finishes the 2021-22 season with a 13.4 rebounding average, which ties him for highest average in a single season. He joins Steve Snow at the top of the list, who posted the same mark during the 1968-69 slate. His 348 total rebounds places him fourth all-time in a single season.

Luke Johnson closes the book on his time at Augustana with nine points on 60 percent shooting. He also added three assists and three steals. Freshman Colton Gillingham added eight off of the bench, while senior Justin Bottorff hit 2-3 shots as well.

With the loss, the Vikings end the year with an 11-15 record. The team qualified for the CCIW Tournament for the 17th time in 17 years and rounded out the year with two wins over top 20 teams.