ST. PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus men’s basketball team allowed a season-high 90 points Wednesday evening at Gus Young Court as Augsburg University shot an impressive 14-for-24 from three-point range en route to defeating the Gusties 90-59.
The Gusties drop to 9-7 overall and 7-4 during Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, while the Auggies improve to 7-4 in the MIAC and 12-4 overall.
Augsburg jumped out to an 18-point lead through the midway point of the first half, converting on six consecutive field goals near the end of a 29-6 run. The Black and Gold cut into the Auggie lead, twice coming within seven points. A Riley Sharbono (Jr., Marshall, Minn.) three-pointer put the deficit at 32-39 with just over 30 seconds remaining.
The Auggies forced nine Gustie turnovers in the first 20 minutes while shooting 16-32 from the field and 6-14 from beyond the arc. Despite Gustavus shooting well in the first half at 53.6 percent (15-28), they trailed 32-41 heading into the intermission.
Similar to the opening minutes of the first half, the visitors were hot from three-point range. A Henry Mulligan three-pointer at the 9:22 minute mark gave Augsburg a 29-point lead at 76-47, as the Auggies began the half shooting 8-9 from beyond the arc. Augsburg owned a 72.7 field goal percentage in the second half, compared to a 35.5 percent mark from the Gusties.
Sharbono led Gustavus with 18 points, going 7-9 from the field and 2-4 from three-point range. Brandon Snoberger (Jr., Rice, Minn.) followed with 10 points and tied for the team-lead in rebounds with Kelsey Thomas (Sr., Wiesdbaden, Germany), each claiming six.
The Black and Gold will take Saturday off before heading to Saint John’s University Monday evening.