WHEATON, Ill. - The University of Dubuque men's basketball team is participating in the Wheaton College Lee Pfund Classic this weekend. The Spartans opened the classic with a 77-69 victory over the University of Olivet Friday night inside King Arena on the campus of Wheaton College.

Olivet got out to a quick 16-8 lead early in the game and led for much of the opening half. The Spartans were able to claw their way back to tie the game at 29-29 after a Nick Kennedy three-pointer with 5:15 remaining. Kennedy's three-pointer catapulted a 17-5 run over the final five minutes to take a 43-34 lead at the half. 

For much of the second half the Spartans would maintain the lead throughout with Olivet cutting the Spartans lead to six with 9:16 remaining, but another big 12-4 run by the Spartans down the stretch gave them their biggest lead of the night at 77-63 with just over four minutes left in the game. The Spartans would go scoreless in the final 4:14, but would hold on to win the opening game of the Lee Pfund Classic. 

Hear from Robbie Sieverding
"It was great to see four guys in double figures tonight. Jalen Scott had his best game of the year and Grady was also very solid tonight. Our guys did a great job on the offensive glass with 20 offensive rebounds. We have a quick turn around but the guys are looking forward to competing for a tournament championship tomorrow."

Four Spartans scored in double figures as Grady Thompson led the way with 17 points on 8-14 shooting from the field. Jaylin McCants and Jalen Scott each had 16, while Keegan Zimmerman made two three-pointer en route to a 10-point performance. 

The Spartans shot 28-67 (41.8%) from the field, but struggled from the charity stripe going 14-24. The Spartans capitalized on 17 Olivet turnovers, turning them into 16 points. 

The Spartans move to 3-2 on the season.

Up Next
The Spartans will play in the championship game of the Lee Pfund Classic tomorrow at 7:00 p.m. against the winner of Wheaton College and Rockford University in the other semifinal.