Game Summary

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's basketball team found itself sailing in some rather unfamiliar waters Wednesday evening, as the Cardinals found themselves with a commanding 10-point lead with 10 minutes remaining in their Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game against Augsburg.

Unfortunately for the Cardinals, those final 10 minutes were anything but smooth sailing an Auggie tidal wave in the form of a 13-0 run gave Augsburg the lead back and the Auggies held on down the stretch for a 59-58 victory.

"Our guys aren't used to having a lead," said SMU coach Mark Lovelace, whose team dropped to 1-8 in the MIAC and 2-11 overall with the loss. "It's different playing with a 10-point lead. It's something we need to get used to. We went away from some of the things that got us that lead."
 
After leading by just three, 32-29, at the half, SMU came out smoking to start the second half, building its lead to 10, 50-40, with 10:15 remaining in regulation.

The Auggies then rode their 13-0 run to a 53-50 lead, only to have SMU tie the game 53-53. A Josh Klemm 3-pointer gave Augsburg a 56-53 lead, but Terrence Smith (Broadview, Ill.) responded with a bucket and a free-throw and the game was tied again.

The game was tied twice more, before Augsburg's Lucas Olson-Patterson scored the last of his game-high 29 points to give the Auggies a 59-58 lead with less than a minute remaining. Smith missed a jumper with 23 seconds left by the Cardinals got the rebound, only to turn it over, forcing SMU to foul Augsburg's Kevin Keto with 12 seconds left. Keto missed both free throws, but Todd Yankowski's (Chicago, Ill.) jumper at the buzzer was off the mark.

"We had a good look (at the potential game-winning basket), it just wouldn't fall," said Lovelace. "This was a tough loss — the guys played hard, and they played well. We just couldn't get it done down the stretch."