Central Reaches Third Straight League Men’s Basketball Tourney Title Game
Larry Happel '81
May 23, 2018
Jamel McKnight ’19
Yet another wild Iowa Conference tournament run capped a rollercoaster men’s basketball season.
The Dutch (12-16) needed a tiebreaker to claim the final spot in the six-team league tourney, yet bolted to their third title game and their fourth in five years. They extended their tournament road win streak to seven games, knocking off Loras College and Buena Vista University, before racing to a stunning 18-point second-half lead at eventual NCAA champ Nebraska Wesleyan, only to falter 82-78. Central’s mark against those three clubs in the regular season was 0-6.
Forward Kyle Smith ’18 finished as Central’s all-time 3-point goals leader for a season (79) and career (256) and as the sixth-highest career scorer with 1,353 points. He was a first-team all-conference pick while forward Malik Wildermuth ’18 and point guard Jamel McKnight ’19 were second-team honorees.