Like the women's game, the men's game remained close much of the first half, where USF took an early 4-0 lead following a Keaton Moffitt layup. However Moffitt's bucket marked the Cougars' only lead of the half.

USF saw their lead disappear when a shooting foul sent Cameron McCaffrey to the free throw line with 16:41 left in the first half. He split the pair to give Augustana a 5-4 lead. The lead change would be the final of the game.

USF was plagued by poor shooting in the first half, where they shot 33% from the field and went 0-8 from beyond the arc. However they saw solid play in between the blocks, where they outscored Augustana 18-6 in the paint.

Just when the Vikings looked to open up a sizeable lead, USF big men Skyler Bloch and Bryan Kielpinski were called on to make a play.

Bloch, who posted 14 points in the first half, converted two of his six free throws of the half at the 9:44 mark to cut USF's deficit to four.

Next, it was Kielpinski; his old fashioned 3-point play with 2:07 left in the half made it 30-23. Seven points is as close as the Cougars would come in the first half. They went to the break down 35-28.

After once trailing the Vikings 13 points in the first half, Keith Cutler helped spark the USF offense when he followed up a traditional 3-point play with a tough layup in the lane to pull the Cougars within three points, at 44-41 with just under 15 minutes left in the game.

Augustana answered as Cody Schilling briefly took over the game during the three minutes. First, he drew contact and converted two free throws. On the ensuing possession, he drove the lane to make a tough layup and drew another foul, but missed the free throw. He ended his run by nailing a 15-foot jumper to give the Vikings a 10 point lead with 8:53 to go.

USF had not made a 3-pointer the entire night, when Saajid Polite confidently pulled up and gave the Cougars a much needed three points with 6:26 left in the game. He wasn't done, the next possession he hit another one, cutting Augustana's lead to three.

The two teams traded scores as Drae Murray made a crowd silencing 3-pointer for Augustana and Bloch responded with a quick two in the paint to set the game at 61-57, Augustana.

Alex Robey's 8-foot jumper with 1:12 to go made for a 62-61 game, but Schilling would answer for Augustana again, making a clutch layup to give the Vikings a three point advantage with 47 ticks left on the clock.

Augustana sent Cutler to the line and he converted two free throws on what would prove to be the final score of the game at 64-63.

After a quick foul and a miss at the line by Augustana, USF had two chances to make a game winning FG and came up just short in a last second thriller.

USF didn't record a victory, but took great strides forward in Tuesday night's game. They displayed depth, outscoring Augustana's bench 31-9 and made key plays at the free throw line, where they finished 17-21 (81%), while the Vikings shot 11-20 (55%).

Bloch led all Cougars with 22 points and four rebounds. Cutler also reached double digits, as he finished with a career high 11 points and two rebounds.

The Cougars travel to St. Paul, Minn. Saturday (Nov.19) for a 2:00p.m. tip-off against Concordia-St. Paul.