Men's Basketball Wins Third Straight IIAC Opener
Jan 6, 2016
BOX SCORE
DUBUQUE, Iowa - Junior Kain Arthofer had a career-night after scoring 25 points on 10 of 15 shooting to lead the University of Dubuque men's basketball team to a 74-65 victory over Wartburg in their Iowa Conference opener on Wednesday night.
Despite Arthofer's hot start and Andre Norris's second-half resurgence the Knights cut the Spartan lead to one with a shade under two minutes to go in the game. A pair of free throw makes by both Alex Vogel and Jacob Mohlis fueled a 6-0 run that put away the pesky Knights and gave the Spartans (8-4, 1-0 Iowa Conference) their third-straight victory in an Iowa Conference opener. After forward Jake Weber opened the contest with a nasty baseline dunk, Norris put a stamp on the victory with a thundering, reverse double-clutch jam that sealed the deal and ended the game.
Norris came alive with 13 of his season-low 15 points in the second half while Arthofer chipped in seven to stave off the Knights (7-5, 0-1 Iowa Conference). Norris also added a game-high 16 rebounds for his IIAC-leading 11th double-double of the season.
On a night when Norris, a preseason All-American was limited to a season-low two points in the first half, Arthofer took the reins to the tune of 18 first-half points and four three-pointers. Arthofer's 7 of 10 first-half performance from the field sparked an opening period that saw 13 combined three-pointers, both teams shooting over 53.3 percent, and a slim 44-40 lead for the Spartans.
"Kain was really good tonight on both ends of the floor," Coach Robbie Sieverding said. "Wartburg is a tough match up on the defensive end but we did a much better job in the second half."
Wartburg junior guard Jordan Cannon, the reigning Iowa Conference Player of the Week, was held to eight points on 3-for-10 shooting after averaging 24.0 points per game over his last three.
UD will face Wartburg again on the road on February 17.
"This was a battle from start to finish and I was proud of the way our guys finished the final three minutes of the game," Coach Robbie Sieverding said. "We will be able to learn from this film and hopefully continue to improve."
The Spartans welcome Luther to Stoltz this Saturday, January 9 at 4:00 p.m. The Norse (1-11, 0-1 IIAC) were beaten by Central, 88-74, in their IIAC opener on Wednesday night.
