 AUGUSTA, Ga. --
The Augusta State Jaguars earned a return trip to Springfield, Mass., and the
NCAA Division II Elite Eight as they used a suffocating defense to smother USC
Aiken 85-57 Tuesday night in Christenberry Fieldhouse.
The fourth-ranked Jaguars, the top seed in the Southeast Regional, improved
to 29-4 on the year with their 15th straight win while USC Aiken saw its season
come to a close at 25-8.
The Jaguars held the Pacers to a season-low 57 points, forcing 17 USCA
turnovers and limiting Aiken to 5-of-21 three-point shooting. The Jaguars shot
61 percent (28-of-46) from the field, had 11 steals and five blocks.
Augusta State sprinted out of the gate, jumping to a 15-4 lead as the Jags
hit seven of their first 11 shots of the game, including six points from Garret
Siler. The Pacers answered back with a 7-2 run to cut the lead to four with 9:45
to go in the first, five of those points from Kingsley Oguchi.
Leading by six with 5:44 to go, the Jags pushed the lead back into double
figures following a Steve Smith 3-pointer and Greg Hire layup and led 36-27 at
the break.
USC Aiken made its move to cut into the ASU lead to start the second half.
After ASU extended the lead to 13 on a 3-pointer from Fred Brathwaite and layup
by Ben Madgen, the Pacers answered with a 7-2 spurt that included a 3-pointer
from Chris Commons.
But USCA would get no closer as Augusta State went on a 15-5 run over the
next four minutes to increased the lead to 21 with 12:39 to play. USCA cut the
lead to 17 following a Josh Dollard jumper, but Ben Madgen’s dunk with 9:21 to
play put the lead back above 20 points where it would remain for the rest of the
game. (More)
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