CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Results of the American Rivers Conference's Men's Basketball Preseason Poll (as voted on by the league's head coaches):
| 2020-21 American Rivers Conference Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll |
| Rank |
School (1st place votes) |
Points |
2019-20 Record |
| 1. |
Loras (3) |
55 |
17-9, 10-6 A-R-C |
| 2. |
Nebraska Wesleyan (2) |
54 |
25-4, 15-1 A-R-C (Reg. Season & Conf. Tour. Champion/NCAA Second Round) |
| 3. |
Wartburg (2) |
44 |
12-15, 7-9 A-R-C |
| 4. |
Dubuque (1) |
42 |
14-11, 7-9 A-R-C |
| T-5. |
Buena Vista (1) |
37 |
18-8, 9-7 A-R-C |
| T-5. |
Coe |
37 |
17-10, 11-5 A-R-C |
| T-7. |
Central |
19 |
5-20, 2-14 A-R-C |
| T-7. |
Luther |
19 |
8-17, 4-12 A-R-C |
| 9. |
Simpson |
17 |
14-13, 7-9 A-R-C |
*Coaches are not permitted to vote for their own teams.
One of the tightest preseason men's basketball polls in the American Rivers Conference was released today. Only one point separated the top vote-getter, Loras College, from second-place Nebraska Wesleyan University. Five schools earned first-place votes in the voting among the conference's nine head coaches. The Duhawks got the most top nods with three and totaled 55 points. The Prairie Wolves got two first-place votes and finished with 54 points. Wartburg College also received two first-place votes and, with 44 points, was just two clear of the University of Dubuque. The Spartans got a first-place vote as did Buena Vista University, which tied Coe College with 37 points each.
New Coaches: None
National Spotlight: The A-R-C has jumped into the national spotlight in recent years with notable NCAA tournament success. It began in 2017 when Wartburg stormed through the conference tournament as the No. 6 seed and marched all the way to the Round of Sixteen. The team that was upset in the tournament semifinals that year, regular-season champion Nebraska Wesleyan, repeated as regular-season champion the following year and went on to win the conference tournament. Six magical wins later, the P-Wolves lofted the 2018 national championship trophy in Salem, Va., with a final victory over Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
Wesleyan won again in 2019 and advanced to the second round of the national tournament where it suffered a mild upset loss. But NCAA at-large Loras carried the A-R-C banner, beating Albion in round one and then North Central in round two on the Cardinals' home court. In what turned out to be a COVID haze of a late winter, the 2020 championships -- both regular season and conference tournament -- went to the Prairie Wolves again and they won a first-round game before losing in round two.
If you are keeping score, that's a national championship and two Sweet 16s in the last four years and an aggregate record of 12-4. Whether there is a national tournament in 2021 is an unanswered question, but you can be sure the A-R-C will be a conference worth keeping an eye on.
The Schedule: As with so much of what has happened since March of 2020, the 2021 season will be like no other in conference history. There were no games for any school in 2020. An eight-game single round-robin schedule is planned with an all-comers conference tournament at the end of the season. It will be the first time all of the teams will be invited to the tournament, which usually has six participants. The American Rivers Conference Tournament champion receives the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball tournament.
The first conference games of the season are scheduled for a week from this Saturday, January 23, with many institutions playing non-conference games prior to the start of conference play. All games prior to January 23, including those games between conference teams, will not count in the conference standings. As a COVID stop-gap, the published schedule has an ending of Saturday, February 20. The following week is designed to make up any games that are affected by the virus. The conference tournament will begin with the 8/9 game on Monday, March 1. The quarterfinals follow the next night, March 2. The semifinals are next on Thursday, March 4 with a championship game planned for Saturday, March 6.
The 2020-21 season kicked off on Sunday, January 3 when Wartburg took on Edgewood College (Wis.) out of the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) on January 3. The Knights dropped a tough one at home, 71-70.
Dubuque began their season on January 10 taking on Edgewood and the Spartans took home a 30-point victory, downing the Eagles 99-69 in Dubuque.
The Storm of Simpson College open their 2020-21 season on the road at Wartburg Tuesday, January 12, taking on the Knights in a non-conference matchup.
Wednesday, January 13 marks opening night for Loras as they hit the road to face Concordia University (Wis.) out of the NACC.
Both Coe and Luther open their seasons in a non-conference matchup in Decorah, Iowa on Thursday, January 14.
Buena Vista and Nebraska Wesleyan square-off in Lincoln, Neb. on January 20 to finish off the conference vs. conference opponent matchups that do not count toward the conference standings.
Central is the last A-R-C team to hit the hardwood in 2021 when they start the season at home against Dubuque in their conference opener on January 23.
2019-20 Season in Review:
Nebraska Wesleyan's remarkable senior class capped their careers with a fourth-straight American Rivers Conference regular-season championship and its second-straight conference tournament title. The P-Wolves had a comfy four-game advantage in the regular-season standings with a 15-1 conference record. Winners of the regular season every year since joining the conference in 2016-17, NWU's amazing record in A-R-C games was a combined 54-10.
Coe College provided one of the best stories in the conference, going from an 8-8 conference record in 2018-19 to 11-5 and a first-round bye in the A-R-C tournament. The Kohawks won their semifinal game and then lost to NWU in the final.
Loras had another very solid year with a 10-6 record in the conference. The Duhawks were upset in the tournament by Wartburg, a team that has consistently made noise in the conference tournament no matter what the Knights do in the regular season.
Buena Vista University got out of the gate very quickly with an eight-game non-conference winning streak. The conference season also started well for the Beavers, who were 6-1 to start the year before the three-game losing streak slowed them down. Still, the team went 9-7 in the conference to finish fourth.
Simpson College, Wartburg, and Dubuque were all 7-9. The Storm took Wartburg's lead and pulled off a first-round A-R-C tournament upset at BVU. Dubuque was the odd-man-out of the tournament based on the conference's tie-breaker. Luther beat two conference tournament teams last year and hopes to take steps forward this year. Central's finish last year was an outlier. The Dutch were in the tournament final in both 2018 and 2017 after winning the event in 2016
| 1st |
|
Loras College
Head Coach: Chris Martin (5th season)
2019-20 Record: 17-9, 10-6 A-R-C
2019-20 Conference Finish: 3rd
Returning All-Conference: Rowan McGowen (First Team),
Starters Returning: 4
Starters Lost: 1
Chris Martin - "We are excited for this season to start! We are thankful to the league athletic directors and presidents for trying to make this work for our student athletes." |
| Players to Watch: |
|
| Cole Navigato - Forward (Sr.) |
10.1-ppg // 55.0-fg% // 5.2-rpg // 10-blk |
| Rowan McGowen - Guard (Sr.) |
16.9-ppg // 41.8-3pt% // 39-ast |
| Jake Healy - Guard (So.) |
8.0-ppg // 45.5-fg% // 87.5-FT% |
| Jackson Kolinski - Center (Jr.) |
6.3-ppg // 45.8-fg% // 11-blk |
| 2nd |
|
Nebraska Wesleyan University
Head Coach: Dale Wellman (7th season)
2019-20 Record: 25-4, 15-1 A-R-C (Reg. Season & Conf. Tour. Champion/NCAA Second Round)
2019-20 Conference Finish: 1st
Returning All-Conference: None.
Starters Returning: 0
Starters Lost: 5
Dale Wellman - "It will be quite the challenge to replace the five senior starters we had last year, but these guys have been waiting their turn and are chomping at the bit to play some competitive basketball, and that is what this conference is all about. It will be a battle on the court with each game and off the court with the adversity and challenges of trying to play in a pandemic." |
| Players to Watch: |
|
| Peyton Priest - Forward (Jr.) |
40.4-3pt% // 5-stl |
| Connor Riekenberg - Guard (So.) |
42.1-3pt% // 4-ast |
| Josh Rogers - Guard (So.) |
2-ast // 1-stl |
| 3rd |
|
Wartburg College
Head Coach: Dick Peth (24th season)
2019-20 Record: 12-15, 7-9 A-R-C
2019-20 Conference Finish: T-5th
Returning All-Conference: Ryan Stulken (Honorable Mention), Max Smith-Drahos (Honorable Mention), Jack Molstead (Honorable Mention)
Starters Returning: 3
Starters Lost: 2
Dick Peth - "We are excited about the opportunity of competing this season. We have a great nucleus returning with three all-conference performers from last season. Our incoming players are fitting in extremely well and we look forward to beginning A-R-C play on Jan. 23." |
| Players to Watch: |
|
| Max Smith-Drahos - Guard (Sr.) |
11.1ppg // 80.5-FT% // 89-ast // 31-stl |
| Mitch Gehling - Forward (Jr.) |
75.0-fg% // 2-ast |
| Davis Roquet - Guard (Jr.) |
5.2-ppg // 47.0-fg% // 6-blk |
| Drew Olson - Guard (Jr.) |
4.8-ppg // 26-ast // 17-stl |
| Jack Molstead - Guard (So.) |
10.9-ppg // 62-ast // 19-stl |
| 4th |
|
University of Dubuque
Head Coach: Robbie Sieverding (14th season)
2019-20 Record: 14-11, 7-9 A-R-C
2019-20 Conference Finish: T-5th
Returning All-Conference: Peter Ragen (First Team), Avery Butler (Honorable Mention)
Starters Returning: 2
Starters Lost: 3
Robbie Sieverding - "Our guys are excited to compete and see how much we can improve throughout the shortened year. We are thankful to be able to compete and our guys are excited about the challenges ahead. Should be a balanced and competitive conference season." |
| Players to Watch: |
| Peter Ragen - Forward (Sr.) |
15.3-ppg // 11-blk // 6.8-rpg |
| Patrick Mayfield - Guard (So.) |
4.5-ppg // 83.3-FT% // 41.4-3pt% |
| Avery Butler - Center (Sr.) |
10.3-ppg // 30-blk // 6.6-rpg |
| Carter Stevens - Guard (So.) |
7.4-ppg // 80.0-FT% // 8-stl |
| Brock Simon - Forward (So.) |
2.3-ppg // 14-blk // 64.9-fg% |
| t-5th |
|
Buena Vista University
Head Coach: Trevor Johnson (2nd season)
2019-20 Record: 18-8, 9-7 A-R-C
2019-20 Conference Finish: 4th
Returning All-Conference: Michael Demers (Second Team)
Starters Returning: 1
Starters Lost: 4
Trevor Johnson - "We are excited to finally be getting back on the floor and starting what should be an extremely competitive season. The A-R-C has become one of the toughest conferences in the country and our guys are looking forward to the challenge we will face each time out." |
| Players to Watch: |
| Michael Demers - Guard (Sr.) |
14.9-ppg // 81.8-FT% // 67-ast // 14-blk |
| Brendan Gary - Forward (Sr.) |
7.5-ppg // 63.5-fg% // 5.8-rpg |
| Jake Thompson - Forward (Sr.) |
2.1-rpg // 11-ast |
| t-5th |
|
Coe College
Head Coach: Bryan Martin (9th season)
2019-20 Record: 17-10, 11-5 A-R-C
2019-20 Conference Finish: 2nd
Returning All-Conference: Jacob Robertson (Second Team)
Starters Returning: 1
Starters Lost: 4
Bryan Martin - "Jake Eilers and Jared Sapp are the two outstanding seniors that will lead us in the 2021 season. Our league has earned a lot of national respect over the last few years and we expect that trend to continue this season. Each team in the A-R-C has plenty of talented players and is well-coached so we know we will have to compete at a very high level each game." |
| Players to Watch: |
|
| Jacob Robertson - Guard (Jr.) |
11.5-ppg // 54.3-fg% // 6.0-rpg // 9-blk |
| Jarad Kruse - Forward (Jr.) |
6.9-ppg // 58.0-fg% |
| Greg Hall - Guard (So.) |
16-ast // 40.9-3pt% |
| Ray Thrapp - Forward (Jr.) |
4.3-ppg // 10-blk // 2.4-rpg |
| Zach Niemeyer - Guard (Jr.) |
15-ast // 7-stl |
| t-7th |
|
Central College
Head Coach: Craig Douma (9th season)
2019-20 Record: 5-20, 2-14 A-R-C
2019-20 Conference Finish: 9th
Returning All-Conference: Adam Flinn (Second Team)
Starters Returning: 4
Starters Lost: 1
Craig Douma - "We are excited about the opportunity to get a chance to play this great game. With the situation our world is in, it makes us grateful for the opportunity to play and give our seniors a chance to play in their final year! The conference seems to be more balanced than ever before and every night will be a challenge. It will be a crazy race with only eight conference games and the level of importance on each game is at an all time high this year! We look forward to the chance to compete in this great conference." |
| Players to Watch: |
|
| Adam Flinn - Guard (Sr.) |
21.0-ppg // 50.7-fg% // 95-ast // 28-stl |
| Caden Mauck - Forward (Sr.) |
15.2-ppg // 57.9-fg% // 9.0-rpg |
| Sean Kostyk - Guard (Sr.) |
10.1-ppg // 84.2-FT% // 39-ast |
| t-7th |
|
Luther College
Head Coach: Mark Franzen (15th season)
2019-20 Record: 8-17, 4-12 A-R-C
2019-20 Conference Finish: 8th
Returning All-Conference: None.
Starters Returning: 3
Starters Lost: 2
Mark Franzen - "We are excited to get back on the floor. Our returners have moved forward and our new guys have fit in really well." |
| Players to Watch: |
| Aaron Blumberg - Forward (Sr.) |
9.4-ppg // 4.0-rpg // 27-ast |
| Jadyn Torres - Forward (Sr.) |
6.5-ppg // 3.1-rpg // 28-ast |
| Gage Thompson - Guard (Sr.) |
9.8-ppg // 86.4-FT% // 27-ast |
| Zach Randolph - Guard (Sr.) |
6.2-ppg // 43.6-3pt% // 7-blk |
| 9th |
|
Simpson College
Head Coach: Brad Bjorkgren (6th season)
2019-20 Record: 14-13, 7-9 A-R-C
2019-20 Conference Finish: T-5th
Returning All-Conference: None
Starters Returning: 1
Starters Lost: 4
Brad Bjorkgren - "We are excited about the energy our guys have brought to practice each day during these challenging times. Our returning players and newcomers have gelled together very well." |
| Players to Watch: |
|
| Kade Tatkenhorst - Guard (Sr.) |
2.3-ppg // 39.3-fg% |
