DUBUQUE, Iowa - The University of Dubuque men's basketball team suffered a 67-48 loss to Augustana College (IL) in their home opener on Saturday afternoon inside the Stoltz Sports Center. 

After a back-and-forth battle in the first four minutes of the game and the Spartans up 8-7, Augie would go on a 14-3 run over the next six minutes to lead the 21-11 over the Spartans with 11:18 left in the first half. Offense slowed down for both teams midway through the half, but Augie would build their lead to 14 going into the half. 

The Spartans came out of the half on a mission scoring 12 of the first 14 points of the second half to cut the Augie lead to four at 41-37 with 16:32 remaining in the game. Both teams went back-and-forth throughout most of the half, but with four minutes remaining and the Spartans down by eight, Augie would use the final minutes to build their lead back up to 67-48 for the final score. 

Hear from Robbie Sieverding
"Augie is a solid team and we didn't guard good enough especially in the first half. We gave ourselves a chance cutting the lead the three in the second half but just couldn't get over the hump. Our team will continue to improve and I'm looking forward to seeing that improvement in the coming weeks."

Sunday John led the team with 13 points, while Jaylin McCants had 10 and added eight rebounds. Grady Thompson had nine points and a team-high 10 rebounds. 

The Spartans struggled from the perimeter in the loss, going 5-28 (17.9%). Augie outscored the Spartans in the paint 44-26 and off the bench 20-10. 

The Spartans fall to 1-2 on the season.

Up Next
The Spartans will be back at home on Tuesday, Nov. 19 when they host Benedictine University at 7:00 p.m.