Box Score

Postgame Interview with Ron Cottrell (video)

HOUSTON – Houston Baptist University senior center Joe Latas scored 18 points, grabbed nine rebounds and dished out four assists, but Augsburg took advantage of a huge edge on the free-throw line to deal the Huskies a 74-68 loss in exhibition play Saturday night at Sharp Gym.
 
Latas hit 8-of-14 from the field and had five boards on the offensive end. Junior guard Anthony Hill hit 3-of-6 3-pointers and finished with 12 points and two assists, while junior forward Art Bernardi had 11 points and four rebounds off the bench. Senior forward Terry Bembry added eight points and six rebounds, while freshman guard Marcel Smith led the Huskies with five assists.
 
Tyler Schmidt hit 3-of-4 3-pointers and went 8-for-8 from the free-throw line to finish with a game-high 21 points for Augsburg. Parker Hines hit 8-of-9 from the line and had 14 points and six assists. Andy Grimm also scored in double figures with 10 points.
 
HBU shot 43.8 percent from the field, 33.3 percent from behind the arc and only 53.3 percent (8-of-15) from the free-throw line, while Augsburg shot 45.3 percent from the field, 45.5 percent from long range and 80.8 percent (21-of-26) from the free-throw line.
 
The Huskies tied the game at 42-42 on Bembry's layup with 16:39 to go in the second half, but the Auggies scored the next eight points and never trailed again. HBU cut the deficit to 54-51 on freshman guard Tyler Russell's layup with 10:19 left, but Andy Seidlitz hit back-to-back threes to put Augsburg back up by nine, 60-51.
 
A jumper by Latas was followed by back-to-back layups by Hill and Bernardi to get the Huskies within three, 60-57, with 3:26 to go, but Augsburg hit 12-of-14 free throws after that point to pull out the victory.
 
The Auggies quickly built a 14-7 lead in the first half as Schmidt hit a pair of threes and a pair of free throws. They led 24-18 with 7:50 to go until the break, but the Huskies went on a 9-0 run on a layup by freshman guard Ronald March Jr., a jumper by Smith, a tip-in by Latas, then a 3-pointer by Hill to take a one-point lead. HBU led, 34-32 with 1:44 to go, but Brett Sorenson scored the final two buckets of the half, including a jumper at the buzzer, to give the Auggies a 36-34 halftime lead.
 
HBU opens the regular season on the road against Campbell Friday at 6:30 p.m. CST in Buies Creek, N.C.