Spartans Pick Up Sixth Straight Win
Jan 2, 2019
PELLA, Iowa – The University of Dubuque men’s basketball team used a big second half on the road to improve to 10-3 overall after a 93-74 win over Central College.
Just 10 combined points were scored over the first six minutes before the offense’s really got going. With the score even at 11 all at the midway point of the first half, the Spartans made their first big run of the game, scoring the next nine points over the next 2:20 to move ahead 20-11. The Dutch shrunk the UD down to one point with 2:30 remaining in the half but a Michael Williams jumper in the paint at the buzzer gave the Spartans a six point lead at the break.
UD carried the momentum over from the Williams buzzer beater and quickly pushed the lead to 13 before the second half was 2:20 old. The closest UD would get for the remainder of the game was nine at the 14:31 mark, but the Spartans responded with another 9-0 run in just over a minute span to go ahead 63-45. The Spartans would get their lead up to as many 24 points at two separate points before closing out the 93-74 win.
Marcus McDaniel had the hot hand on Wednesday night for the Spartans, pouring in a game-high 26 points on 7-10 shooting, including 5-7 from beyond the arc and 7-9 from the free throw line. Michael Williams was nearly perfect from the field against the Dutch on his way to 16 points, after missing just one of his seven shots. Jason Barker came off the bench to add 12 points.
The Spartans shot 48.5% from the field for the game, including a red-hot, 57.6% in the second half for 58 second half points. A key to the high shooting percentage was the Spartans ability to get in the paint, scoring 46 points in the paint, compared to Central’s 27. UD forced the Dutch into 12 turnovers and took full advantage of those, scoring 18 points off of turnovers. The UD bench continues to provide sparks as they outscored the Central bench, 29-12.
The Spartans host Simpson College on Saturday at 4:00 p.m. in the Stoltz Sports Center.
