MONMOUTH, Ill. - The University of Dubuque men's basketball team got the road win over the Monmouth College Fighting Scots on Tuesday night after a career night from Grady Thompson, finishing with 19 points to lead the Spartans to their fourth consecutive victory. 

The Spartans were red hot to open the game tonight from the perimeter, knocking down 8-15 (53.3%) in the first 20 minutes. Dylan Hibicke provided a huge spark off the bench knocking down 3-4 from beyond the arc in only 11 minutes in the first half. The Spartans led by a game-high 17 points with five minutes left until halftime, but Monmouth was able to trim the lead to single digits with an 18-8 run down the stretch. 

Leading by seven at the break, the Spartans maintained a lead through the first nine minutes of the second half, but Monmouth made it back to tie the game at 63-63 with 11:05 remaining. The Spartans would respond with a 12-4 run over the next five minutes to extend their lead back to eight. Down the stretch in the final minutes, the Spartans defense would clamp down Monmouth, holding them scoreless in the final three minutes. The Spartans also converted all eight free throws in the final minutes. 

Hear from Robbie Sieverding
"We shot the ball really well in the first half, but we didn't finish the half the way we wanted. It was great to see Dylan Hibicke get going in the first half and Keegan had his best offensive game of the year. We have been doing a better job taking care of the basketball of late and we did a good job finishing the game at the foul line tonight. It was good team win heading into thanksgiving break."

With Thompson's career night, the sophomore guard also grabbed seven rebounds and went 6-7 from the charity stripe, 4-4 in the final two minutes. Three other Spartans were in double-figures as Keegan Zimmerman also went 3-4 from the three-point line and ended his night with 17 points. Hibicke finished with 13 points, all coming in the first half and Jaylin McCants added 12 points. Nick Kennedy continues to be great on the glass finishing with 10 rebounds and Jalen Scott had a team-high four assists. 

The Spartans did cool off in the second half, but finished the game shooting 45.8% from the field and was 21-27 (77.8%) from the free throw line.

After starting the season 1-2, the Spartans have now rallied off four straight wins to move to 5-2 on the season.

Up Next
The Spartans will play their conference home opener on Wednesday, December 4 at 7:30 p.m. from the Stoltz Sports Center when they welcome the Luther College Norse to town.