NAPERVILLE, Ill. -- The Augustana Vikings men's basketball team will stay on the road for another CCIW battle on Saturday, December 7 when they visit the North Central Cardinals.

Augustana improved to 5-1 on the season and 1-0 in the CCIW on Wednesday with a 77-66 road victory over Elmhurst, the first win for the Vikings at Elmhurst since 2019. Trailing by seven at the break, Augie out-scored the Bluejays by 18 in the second half to win by double figures. After a three-point play moved the home team's advantage to 10 to begin the half, Augustana rattled off 13 straight points, seven of which coming from Tyler Knuth, put them out in front at 43-40. From there, the lead was exchanged twice until Augie went back out in front for good following a three from Knuth around the 14-minute mark. The game remained within two possessions for the next five minutes and the Bluejays caught back up to tie the score at 51 apiece, but the Vikings never lost the lead as they used a 12-2 run over the span of the next three minutes to garner their first double-digit advantage of the contest. The closest Elmhurst got the rest of the way was eight and Augie closed things out with an 11-point victory.

The Vikings hit 57 percent of their shots in the second half, including 6-7 from three-point range, to finish at 54 percent for the game. The team's defense also held the Bluejays to just 35 percent shooting the ball through the final 20 minutes. Knuth led all scorers with 25 points on 8-12 shooting and four made three-pointers, while Staishaun Kelley added 16 points and a pair of steals. Chase Larsen also ended in double figures with 10.

North Central enters Saturday with a 5-2 overall record and 0-1 mark in the CCIW. The Cardinals dropped their conference opener to Millikin at home on Wednesday by a score of 73-67. The Big Blue had a strong opening half and led 35-27 after 20 minutes of action. North Central got within two in the second half but never caught all the way up as Millikin escaped with the road victory The loss was the first for the Cardinals in their home gym this season after winning their first and only other game inside Gregory Arena over Benedictine on November 26. North Central boasts four players scoring in double figures this season, with Terrance Moncrief leading the way at 14.4 points per outing. Fifth-year guard Ethan Helwig is putting up 9.3 points and a team-best 8.4 rebounds per game.

Saturday will be the 182nd all-time meeting between the two programs, with Augie leading the series 109-72. The two teams split their two encounters last season, eaching winning on their own home court. 

Start time is scheduled for 7:15 p.m.