Starting and finishing out the game strong against Williams College, the Augustana men’s basketball team earned their way into the NCAA Division III Championship game against Babson College.
The battle for the championship title will begin at 6 p.m. ET.
The Vikings started off the game with a 17-2 lead in the first five minutes of play. The Vikings were hot from the 3-point line as they hit five of five 3-pointers from senior Jacob Johnston, sophomores Crishawn Orange and Brett Benning and junior Dylan Sortillo.
The Vikings’ lead began to dwindle as Williams began to invigorate their offense. The Vikings ended the first half 42-34.
The second half was a back and forth race as the Vikings lead was cut down to 2 points, then Williams took the lead and the two teams duked it out for the lead. It wasn’t until the final minutes of the game that the Vikings broke out and earned a eight point lead.
The Vikings were able to close the game as Williams began to foul and sent the VIkings to the free throw line.
It was a huge team effort as multiple players were in the double digits with points for the Vikings. Orange led the way with 21 points, followed by Ebel and Benning with 17, Sortillo with 15 and Johnston with 14.