NAPERVILLE, Ill. -- The Augustana Vikings men's basketball team came up short on Wednesday in the CCIW opener, falling on the road to the North Central Cardinals by a score of 61-59.

"This game was a microcosm of our season so far," said head coach Tom Jessee. "We really fought and did some great things in stretches, but just did not make enough positive plays to get the win."

Augustana got off to a fast start offensively, doubling up the Cardinals 8-4 before eventually doing it again at a larger margin of 22-11 following a 12-2 scoring run. North Central responded with a big scoring spurt before the half, using a 16-2 outburst to not only pull even, but take the lead before the break. The Cardinals' scoring run continued through the end of the half as the home team held a 32-26 advantage after 20 minutes of play.

North Central enjoyed its largest cushion early in the second half, scoring the first basket and pushing the lead to nine. Augustana slowly chipped away at the deficit, cutting it to a single point on four separate occasions before the two teams sat in a deadlock at 51 points apiece with 5:20 to go. A layup from Matt Hawkins a minute later gave the Vikings the lead back for the first time since it was 24-22. The two teams continued to alternate buckets, with neither holding a lead of more than one possession until a critical defensive stop and a pair of free throws put the Cardinals up 60-56 with 34 seconds remaining. Tyler Knuth answered with a three-pointer on the ensuing possession to bring the Vikings within one.

In the final moments of the game, Augie saw two possessions to tie or take the lead after North Central connected on one of two shots from the free throw line. The Vikings were unable to capitalize on two looks in the paint on the first chance, but quickly grabbed the ball right back after the Cardinals overthrew a pass down court and was saved into the hands of Augustana. A last-second look near the basket bounced around the rim and off and the Cardinals escaped with the 61-59 victory.

Knuth led all scorers with 16 points on 5-11 shooting and a 50 percent mark from behind the three-point line. Hawkins was next with 12 points on 4-6 shooting.

Augustana will be back in action Saturday at Carthage.