ROCK ISLAND, Ill. (Jan. 17, 2009) - The North Central College men's basketball team was forced to absorb its first College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin contest of the season on Saturday, as the Augustana College (Ill.) Vikings took control early and held on for a 80-63 victory at the Carver Physical Education Center.

The Cardinals (11-4, 3-1 CCIW) came out of their corner swinging, scoring the first seven points of the game, but Augustana countered with 15 unanswered points to move ahead, 15-7, with 12:35 left in the opening period. North Central fought back to trail by just a 29-24 count with 3:39 before halftime, but the Vikings closed the half with a 13-4 surge just before halftime and carried a 42-28 advantage into the break.

Augustana (12-4, 3-2) led by as many as 21 points in the second period and stayed in front by double digits the rest of the way. The Vikings made 26 of 32 free throws in the contest (81.3 percent), while North Central made 11 of 24 (45.8 percent).

Augustana, which shot 54.5 percent from the floor (24-44) for the evening, had four players in double figures, led by Alex Washington and Brett Wessels, each of whom scored 12 points. Chandlor Collins and Matt Pelton both turned in six rebounds, and Wessels and Pelton each finished with four assists.

Matt Rogers (Sr., Rochelle, Ill./Rochelle) headlined North Central's scoring efforts with 18 points in 18 minutes. Chris Drennan (Sr., Bloomington, Ill./Normal Community) tacked on 14 points and a team-leading seven rebounds..

The Cardinals travel to Elmhurst on Wednesday, with varsity action scheduled to get under way at 7:30 p.m.