After dropping four straight games, the Central College men’s basketball team righted the ship by beating a nationally ranked University of Dubuque squad Sunday afternoon 85-75. Meanwhile, a big third quarter gave the Dutch women a chance, but the Spartans squeaked out a 53-52 win.

The Central men (10-6 overall, 4-3 American Rivers) got the best of Dubuque, who is ranked No. 18 in the D3hoops.com Top 25. In just his second game back in the lineup after an injury, forward Grant Johnson dropped a season-high 22 points while chipping in seven rebounds and six assists. A 25-point night made Kaleb Brand the leading scorer. Center Joshua Van Gorp had a quiet game by his standards, scoring 15 points and grabbing eight rebounds. Kole Tupa took the mantle of leading rebounder away from Van Gorp, notching 13 on the night.

After a Spartan fast break layup put the Central women (8-8, 2-5 conference) in a 33-24 hole with 7:24 left to play in the third quarter, the Dutch put together a 15-6 run to end the quarter and take a 39-38 lead. Central led for most of the fourth quarter until a three-pointer by Dubuque put them in front 53-52 with 2:01 left in the contest. Neither team was able to score from that point, including three missed shot attempts by Central. With 12 points and 17 rebounds, center Allison Van Gorp notched her seventh double-double of the season and 19th of her career. The Dutch bench contributed 25 points, highlighted by 11 from CeCe Moore on 5-5 shooting. Hannah Dau and Jasmyn Williams had eight and six, respectively.

The Central basketball teams travel to Luther College on Wednesday for a women’s-men’s doubleheader starting at 5:30 pm.