MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's basketball team appeared to be on the verge of its second Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory of the season Saturday afternoon.
 
Unfortunately for the Cardinals, things aren't always as they appear.
 
The Cardinals, fueled by a four-point halftime advantage and an 8-2 run to open the second half, boasted a commanding 41-31 cushion three minutes with 17 minutes remaining in regulation.
 
The Auggies, however, shifted that momentum, using an 18-6 burst to take their first lead of the game, 49-47—a lead Augsburg would not relinquish in handing the Cardinals a 73-58 setback.
 
Saint Mary's came out firing, scoring 16 of the game's first 20 points—including nine from Will Swiggum (St. Charles, Minn.) and four from Mark Schumacher (Perham, Minn.)—to take an early 16-4 lead.
 
Augsburg would cut the deficit to one, 29-28, but Saint Mary's would not relinquish the lead, taking a four-point, 33-29, lead into the locker room at the break.
 
The second half was not as kind to the Cardinals, as Augsburg—fueled by the 18-6 run that gave the Auggies their first lead of the game—outscored Saint Mary's 44-25 over the game's final 20 minutes to secure the win.
 
Swiggum led three Cardinals in double figures, scoring a team-high 14 points, while Connor Kaiser (Rockland, Wis.) chipped in 13 points and Schumacher finished with 12. Saint Mary's shot 44 percent from the field (22-for-50)—but were just 8-for-22 in the second half.
 
Parker Hines scored a game-high 22 points and added nine assists to lead the way for the Auggies (6-5 MIAC, 9-7 overall).
 
The Cardinals (1-10 MIAC, 2-12 overall) step out of conference play on Monday, hosting Martin Luther in a 7 p.m. nonconference game at the Saint Mary's Gym.