Simpson falls to Dubuque 71-63 in IIAC Tournament

DUBUQUE, Iowa – Chris Frazier scored 15 points to lift Dubuque to a 71-63 win over the Simpson men's basketball team in the first round of the Iowa Conference Tournament on Tuesday night.

Third-seeded Dubuque advances to face second-seeded Buena Vista in the tournament semifinals on Thursday night while Simpson's season comes to a close.

Andre Norris came off the bench to score 14 points for the Spartans (20-6), who finished the season 3-0 against Simpson. Frazier and Jordan Townsend hit three, 3-pointers apiece and Dubuque made 10 from downtown on the night.

Elijah Knox had 12 points and nine rebounds and AJ Arrington scored a game-high 16 points coming off the bench for the sixth-seeded Storm (7-19), who upset Dubuque as the sixth seed in the first round of last year's tournament.

Miles Hookstead gave Dubuque a 12-point lead – its largest of the game – with a layup at the 17:09 mark in the second half.

Simpson came back, though, slowly chipping away until a jumper by Charles Swain capped a 6-0 spurt that made the score 58-54 with 4:21 remaining.

But Simpson would get no closer as Norris stopped the run with a lay-in and hit two, 3-point daggers to help Dubuque pull away down the stretch.