ROCK ISLAND -- The Augustana Vikings men's basketball team took down the No. 11 Illinois Wesleyan Titans on Saturday by a score of 85-76 to clinch a first-round home game in the upcoming CCIW Tournament.

The Titans sent in a jumper on the first possession of the game for their first and only lead, quickly followed by a Tyler Knuth triple to move the Vikings out in front. Knuth collected the first 12 points of the contest for the Vikings and helped Augie build a five-point advantage after four minutes of action. Illinois Wesleyan hung around within a single possession over the course of the next two minutes, but Augie broke away with a 10-0 run that saw points from five different players. An Anthony Cooper three-pointer around the seven-minute mark gave the Vikings their largest of the game at 18 and the team held a double-digit cushion until the final three minutes. The Titans closed the half on a 13-5 run to make it a 45-39 lead for Augustana at the break. Knuth posted 17 points in the first half and the Vikings hit 53 percent of their shots. Illinois Wesleyan shot over 53 percent from both the field and behind the three-point line through 20 minutes, but Augie held a plus-six advantage at the free throw line to make up the difference.

A basket by the Titans on the open possession of the second got them within four before a triple around 17 minutes shrunk the gap to just three at 49-46. Ray Maurchie accounted for the next five points for Augie to keep the visitors out of striking distance and the Vikings maintained a two-possession lead approaching the halfway point of the second half. A Matt Hawkins basket with 10:31 to go gave Augie its largest differential of the second half and the lead never dipped below five the rest of the way. Three made free throws by Cooper extended the margin out to double figures with 7:30 remaining and the Vikings enjoyed a double-digit lead for nearly the rest of the way. The two teams traded baskets down the stretch, with a late run by the Titans erasing a 10-point deficit and putting the score at 76-70 with 1:50 showing on the clock. Nicolas Giliberto halted the momentum for the visitors with a made jumper and the Vikings hit seven free throws the rest of the way to hang on for the win.

Both teams saw their hot shooting from the first half go away in the second, with each shooting below 40 percent overall and under 20 percent from deep. Knuth ended with a game-high 23 points for the Vikings, while Evan Ambrose and Hawkins each added 13. Knuth also moved into 12th on the all-time scoring list for Augustana and into third for most threes made in a single season. Cooper finished in double figures with 11, while Maurchie narrowly missed a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds. 

With the victory, Augustana improves to 16-9 on the season and finishes the CCIW regular season with a 9-7 record. The team has officially clinched the No. 4 seed in the upcoming conference tournament and will host No. 5 Elmhurst on Tuesday at 7 p.m.