WAVERLY, Iowa – The Wartburg College Knights (15-8 overall, 9-5 A-R-C) fell in a closely contested affair to the No. 1 Nebraska Wesleyan Prairie Wolves (22-1, 13-1) 85-82 on Saturday evening.


 
Senior guard Cam Kickbush (Reinbeck) led the Knights in scoring with 21 points, 18 of which came off of five made three-pointers. Sophomore guard Max Smith Drahos (Cedar Rapids) finished with 17 points, while senior guard Jaran Sabus (Urbandale) and freshman forward Aidan Weber (Phoenix, Ariz.) finished with 15 points and 11 points, respectively. Weber led the team in rebounding with seven, followed by Sabus at six and junior guard Tyler Zumbach (Anamosa) with four.  
 
For the Prairie Wolves, Jack Hiller led the team with 22 points, followed by Cooper Cook at 16 points and Nate Schimonitz with 11 points. Cook nearly recorded a double-double by finishing with nine rebounds, while Ryan Garver, Clay Reimers, Hiller and Schimonitz all finished with four rebounds each.
 
Kickbush connected on two early three-pointers to help the Knights gain an early 6-2 lead in the game's first two minutes. Nebraska Wesleyan matched the Knights offensively for the next 17 minutes, never trailing by more than five points at a time. With 45 seconds left in the first half, Smith Drahos connected on three free throws to put the Orange and Black up eight, 43-35.  
 
An ensuing foul by Kickbush led to Nebraska Wesleyans Schimonitz heading to the free throw line for a one-and-one attempt. After connecting on the first free throw, Schimonitz missed his second, which was knocked out of bounds and declared Wartburg ball. A three-pointer by freshman guard Spencer Touro (Newhall) before time expired gave the Knights a 10-point lead, 46-36, heading into the break.
 
Wartburg suffered a 22-8 run by the Prairie Wolves over the first eight minutes of the second half to trail 58-52 with just under 12 minutes to play. Trading baskets with Nebraska Wesleyan, the Knights struggled to cover much ground over the next three minutes, but a quick 6-0 run put the Orange and Black down three points, 67-64, with 6:58 remaining. The Prairie Wolves managed to bump their lead back up to six (71-65) over the next couple possessions, but Wartburg managed to fight its way back by trailing by one points, 72-71 with 4:35 left to play.
 
The two teams traded baskets over the next few minutes before heading into the final minute with Wartburg down one, 76-75. Two layups by Nebraska Wesleyan's Cook, in addition to made free throws by Ryan Garver, Schimonitz, and Reimers proved to be too much to overcome as Wartburg fell 85-82 for only the third time this season.
 
Nebraska Wesleyan led the Knights in all shooting statistical categories, assists (21-19), steals (8-7) and blocks (6-0). Wartburg held the rebounding advantage, 34-31. Nebraska Wesleyan clinched the American Rivers Conference regular season title following the victory, in addition to securing the No. 1 seed going into the conference tournament.
 
After connecting on five three-pointers in tonight's game, Cam Kickbush has broken the school record for most three-pointers made in an individual season. Former player Todd Reinhardt set the second during the 1990-91 season with 79 made treys.
 
Wartburg will return to action on Wednesday when they welcome in Buena Vista University (11-13, 5-10). Tipoff is set for 8 p.m.