SIOUX FALLS, S.D.—The Minnesota State University Moorhead men completed a weekend sweep with a 78-68 win over Augustana in road action Saturday night thanks to sophomore guard Gavin Baumgartner's team-high 23 points.

The Dragons improve to 11-7 overall and 7-5 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference while Augustana drops to 11-7 overall and 6-6 in the NSIC.

MSUM shot 53.7 percent (29-of-54) from the field and 36.8 percent (7-of-19) from beyond the arc compared to 37.3 percent (25-of-67) from the field and 20 percent (5-of-25) from three for Augustana. MSUM's bench outscored Augustana's 23-5.

Along with his 23 points, Baumgartner also added five rebounds. Sophomore guard Bryce Irsfeld scored 17 points and five rebounds. Junior forward Kaedrick Williams added 10 points and also led the Dragons on the glass with eight rebounds. Freshman forward Dane Zimmer scored eight points and grabbed six rebounds off the bench for MSUM.  

In the first half, the Dragons found themselves with the lead for most of the half. The Dragons were able to lead by seven at the 11:04 mark in the first, but Augustana tied it up at 21-21 with 8:58 to go in the half. A jumper by senior guard Johnny Beeninga with just under one-minute remaining in the first half gave the Dragons an eight-point lead, their largest of the half. Augustana closed the lead, and the Dragons entered halftime up 37-33.

In the second half, the Dragons kept the momentum going. MSUM did not let Augustana take the lead at any point in the half. Two free throws by the Vikings with 8:11 remaining may have tied the game, but the Dragons remained in control. MSUM continued to take control and found themselves up 71-65 thanks to a layup by Zimmer with 1:06 remaining. The Dragons saw their largest lead of the game come with 13 seconds left on the clock, when they led 76-65. The Dragons would go on to take home a 78-68 win.
Beeninga finished with eight points and led the Dragons with four assists.

The Dragons return home to host their next four games. MSUM takes on Minnesota Duluth on Jan. 24 at 7:30 p.m. The next day, the Dragons match up with St. Cloud State at 5:30 p.m.

Steve d'Eustachio Stat of the Game: Tonight marked the first time the Dragons played Augustana on the road since pulling out a thrilling 91-89 double OT win on Jan. 13, 2017. Ayob Ayob hit a layup on a set play with 2 seconds left in the second stanza on his way to a 28 point, 8 rebound performance to give the Dragons the win, moving them to 14-3 overall and 9-2 in NSIC play.