SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Concordia-St. Paul men's basketball team (8-5, 3-4 NSIC) dropped an 82-69 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference decision to Augustana (8-4, 6-1 NSIC) on Saturday afternoon at the Elmen Center.

The Golden Bears were unable to overcome a strong first half from the Vikings, who built a 47-32 lead at the break and maintained control throughout the second half.

Junior Ben Kopetzki led Concordia with 16 points and six assists, shooting 6-of-14 from the field and adding two three-pointers. Junior Jaden Wysocki chipped in eight points and five rebounds, and fellow junior Chet Kloss finished second on the team with nine points, also pulling down two boards.

Sophomore Owen Carlson provided a spark off the bench with 10 points and three rebounds, while Hudson Vaith added eight points and six rebounds, Marcus Burks contributed six points and three rebounds, and Patrick Bath finished with four points, two rebounds, and two steals. Ryan Johnson tied for the team lead with six rebounds, also adding three points and three assists.

Augustana played with an edge from the opening tip, scoring the first eight points of the game and leading by 11 at 13-2 less than three minutes in. The Golden Bears briefly cut the deficit to single digits at 22-13 with 12:47 remaining in the half, but the Vikings quickly surged back to lead by as many as 19 on the way to a 47-32 advantage at the break. The Bears never got within 10 in the second half, with the Vikings fending off every Concordia push to secure the 82-69 win.

As a team, CSP shot 24-of-64 (37.5%) from the field and 8-of-31 (25.8%) from three-point range, while going 13-of-20 at the free throw line. Augustana finished 26-of-53 (49.1%) shooting, knocked down 10 three-pointers, and held a 38-36 rebounding advantage. Concordia managed a significant advantage on the offensive glass, pulling down nine offensive rebounds to Augustana's four, and turning that into a 14-2 edge in second-chance points.

The Vikings were paced by Tameron Ferguson with a game-high 22 points and five assists. Tanner Te Slaa added a 15-point, 10-rebound double-double, while Caden Hinker finished with 12 points and three rebounds.

The Golden Bears will now be idle for two weeks over the holidays, returning to action on Saturday, January 3 at Winona State.