Mavs Thwart Augustana Rally in NCC Opener
Jan 9, 2004 | Men's Basketball
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- The Mavericks built a big lead, then had to fight off a torrid second half rally by Augustana before holding on to register a 74-67 victory over the Vikings in the North Central Conference opener for both teams. UNO, which improved to 10-3 overall, will meet No. 3 ranked South Dakota State Saturday night at 8 in Brookings. The game will be broadcast on KOIL, 1020 am.
The Mavericks broke a tight game open with a 16-3 run at the end of the first half to take a 44-26 halftime lead and expanded the margin to as many as 22 points after intermission.
C.J. Martin's layup gave UNO a 57-37 lead with 12 minutes left, but then the Mavs stalled. Augustana rattled off eight straight points and eventually pulled to within 59-52 with 6:32 left.
Maverick senior Tola Dada helped restore order, hitting two free shots followed by a three-pointer for a personal 5-0 run with 2:20 left to give UNO a 68-55 lead.
Augustana (4-10, 0-1) creeped back to within six, fueled by three-point shots by James Borom and Nick Olson. Olson's layup with 23 seconds left melted UNO's lead to 72-66. Maverick guard Ty Graham knocked down a pair of free throws with 14 seconds left to stop the rally.
"We did a good job defensively," UNO Coach Kevin McKenna said. "The second half our intensity dipped just a little bit and we got a little careless with the ball."
The Mavericks shot 52 percent from the field the first half and limited the Vikings to just nine field goals and 32 percent shooting. After the break, UNO colled to just 35 percent from the floor, while the Vikings shot 45 percent.
"I'd say top-to-bottom that was our best first half of the season. All the guys stepped up and played well tonight," McKenna said.
Randy Bland led four Mavs in double figures with 14 points. Graham added 12 and Dada and Levy Jones each scored 10 and added nine rebounds.
Justin VanMeeteren scored 16 points to lead Augustana.
The Mavericks broke a tight game open with a 16-3 run at the end of the first half to take a 44-26 halftime lead and expanded the margin to as many as 22 points after intermission.
C.J. Martin's layup gave UNO a 57-37 lead with 12 minutes left, but then the Mavs stalled. Augustana rattled off eight straight points and eventually pulled to within 59-52 with 6:32 left.
Maverick senior Tola Dada helped restore order, hitting two free shots followed by a three-pointer for a personal 5-0 run with 2:20 left to give UNO a 68-55 lead.
Augustana (4-10, 0-1) creeped back to within six, fueled by three-point shots by James Borom and Nick Olson. Olson's layup with 23 seconds left melted UNO's lead to 72-66. Maverick guard Ty Graham knocked down a pair of free throws with 14 seconds left to stop the rally.
"We did a good job defensively," UNO Coach Kevin McKenna said. "The second half our intensity dipped just a little bit and we got a little careless with the ball."
The Mavericks shot 52 percent from the field the first half and limited the Vikings to just nine field goals and 32 percent shooting. After the break, UNO colled to just 35 percent from the floor, while the Vikings shot 45 percent.
"I'd say top-to-bottom that was our best first half of the season. All the guys stepped up and played well tonight," McKenna said.
Randy Bland led four Mavs in double figures with 14 points. Graham added 12 and Dada and Levy Jones each scored 10 and added nine rebounds.
Justin VanMeeteren scored 16 points to lead Augustana.
Players Mentioned
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