ROCK ISLAND, Ill.- The Elmhurst University men's basketball team dropped a 67-86 contest on the road at Augustana College (IL) Wednesday evening.

The two teams kept the score close throughout the game, but a late scoring surge from the Vikings allowed the home team to pull away with the 19-point victory.

Elmhurst (11-6, 3-5 CCIW) was led by Ocean Johnson's game-high 23 points and 12 rebounds, his third double-double on the 2022-23 campaign. John Ittounas contributed 11 points for the Bluejays, while Wesley Hooker knocked down nine points in the defeat. It was a historic night for Jonathan Zapinski, as his six blocks moved the senior into a tie for first place on the career blocks list, needing just one block to surpass Will Nixon's mark set from 2013-2016. His six blocks also tied a record for most in a game, with six blocks occurring twice in Elmhurst basketball history.

Augustana (5-12, 3-5 CCIW) was led by Anthony Cooper's 19 points on six-for-seven shooting from the field. The Vikings as a whole saw double-digit scoring efforts from four different players, with Matt Hawkins tallying 15, Evan Ambrose scoring 13, and Dan Carr contributing 11 points.

A game of runs in the first half saw the Vikings open a nine-point lead with 13:01 to go. A 13-4 run from the Bluejays tied the game at 23 with under eight to go, and the score remained close heading into the half with the teams knotted at 39.

After the Vikings took the lead out of the half and Elmhurst tightened the deficit to two with 14:44 to go, but a 20-9 burst from the home side opened the lead to 13, and the Bluejays could not keep up with Augustana and fell by 19 points on the road. 

UP NEXT

Elmhurst will stay on the road this weekend, heading to Kenosha, Wis. for a matchup with Carthage at 4:15 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 21.

FOLLOW THE BLUEJAYS

Be sure to keep up with all Elmhurst University Athletics content by following the Bluejays on Twitter (@elmhurstbluejay), Facebook (Elmhurst University Athletics) and Instagram (@elmhurstbluejays), and tune in to elmhurstbluejays.com for the latest news and information.