ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Concordia Golden Bears men's basketball team (4-12, 1-8 NSIC) hung tight throughout the night but were unable to come out on top in an 84-76 loss to Augustana (12-4, 7-3 NSIC) on Saturday night at Gangelhoff Center.
 
The Golden Bears made it tough on the defending national champs all night long as they matched them shot-for-shot nearly the whole game. CSP knocked down 43.9% (25-57) from the floor, including a mark of 44.8% (13-29) after the break. The Vikings, on the other hand, hit 46.8% (29-62) but were held to just 41.9 (13-31) in the second half as Concordia looked to stage a comeback.
 
CSP found most of their success down low with a 26-22 edge in points in the paint, including a 14-8 edge in the final 20 minutes, while they also outscored Augie 27-23 off the bench. While neither team struggled much with turnovers, Augustana was able to capitalize more in that regard with a 17-9 advantage in points off turnovers despite a difference of just 11-9 in the turnover category.
 
Concordia shook things up in the starting lineup as they started four freshmen and a sophomore for the first time all year and the unit responded by finishing as a +4 in plus-minus in their time together on the court.
 
Sam Siganos orchestrated the offense with seven assists and six rebounds while picking up a career-best 14 points as he flirted with a triple-double in the loss. Matt Ambriz was also effective with 15 points on a solid 5-7 shooting and 3-4 from deep as he was the lone starter not in their freshmen season.
 
Ted Brown and Max Keefe also added to the offensive output with nine and eight points, respectively as Brown was 4-4 from the floor and Keefe contributed eight boards on the night.
 
Coming off the bench for the first time all year, Bryndan Matthews responded with an efficient night from the floor as he knocked down 7-10 shot and added six boards on the night. Diallo Powell chipped in eight points and three rebounds off the bench as well.
 
Mike Busack, John Warren and Jordan Spencer all finished double figures for the Vikings from the starting unit while Steven Schaefer was a spark off the bench with 17 points in the win. Busack led all scorers with 19 points to go along with seven boards while Warren had 16 points and five assists.
 
With the new-look starting five, the Golden Bears came out with a lot of energy and quickly built a 7-2 lead as they remained out front until the 14:32 mark. With the lead still at five at 12-7, the Vikings scored the next eight points to take their first lead of the night at 15-12. The lead grew to seven a few minutes later before reaching double figures with 5:36 to go in the half at 33-23.
 
Augustana looked to continue to push their advantage heading into the locker room as it hit 13 before a late burst for CSP cut it all the way down to seven before the break. Siganos drilled a three moments before the end of the half to bring the score to 43-36.
 
The Golden Bears started off the second half the same way they closed out the first as Matt Ambriz hit a three to quickly close the gap to 43-39 after the first possession of the half. The Vikings turned the momentum back in their favor from there with the lead returning to double figures by the 15:29 mark at 54-44. The lead still sat at nine at 62-53 before a crucial 11-4 run pulled the Golden Bears within a pair at 66-64 with 9:49 left on the clock.
 
Concordia had several chances to even the score over the next few minutes but had a few shots rim out as they were unable to pick up a bucket. CSP went over five and a half minutes without scoring as the Augie lead went from 69-66 to 78-66 during that span to give the Vikings the decisive edge. The Golden Bears battled over the final few minutes to cut it down to six, but they ran out of time as Augustana held on for the 81-75 win.
 
Concordia has a quick turnaround as they travel to Minnesota State on Tuesday before returning home to host U-Mary and Minot State over the weekend.