Simpson tabbed seventh in preseason poll

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - The Simpson men's basketball team checked in at seventh in the 2022-23 American Rivers Conference Preseason Poll, as announced by the league office on Wednesday.

The Storm collected 21 points to finish in seventh, ahead of eighth place Central (16 points) and ninth place Luther (12 points).

Defending A-R-C champion Dubuque earned first place honors, picking up 61 points and five first place votes. Wartburg took second with 50 points and three first place votes. Buena Vista and Nebraska Wesleyan tied for third with 44 points each, but Buena Vista earned the only other remaining first place vote.

Loras was not far behind in fifth with 41 points, while Coe, who came in second a year ago, was voted in sixth with a total of 35 points.

Head coach Brad Bjorkgren enters his eighth season as the head of the Simpson men's basketball program and gets a vital piece back this year in fifth-year senior Chris Honz. Honz earned All-A-R-C First Team honors in 2020-21 and was named to the Honorable Mention team last season. Honz played in all 25 games last season for the Storm, leading the team in overall minutes played and total rebounding. Honz was third in the conference in rebounding, pulling down 166 total for an average of 6.6 a game. He was also ranked sixth in field goal percentage, shooting 56.3% from the field, while averaging 10.1 points per game.

Also returning for the Storm is senior Andrew Curran, who received All-A-R-C Second Team Honors in 2020-21. Curran averaged 11.6 points per game for the Storm last season while appearing in all but two games. Curran, a career 80% free throw shooter, ranked in the top 10 last season in free throw percentage as well as three-point field goals made per game (1.5 per game).

The Storm begin their 2022-23 campaign with six straight home games, kicking off the season by hosting Faith Baptist Bible on Nov. 8. The Storm open their conference season on Nov. 22 with a home game against Loras.

2022-23 American Rivers Conference Men's Basketball Preseason Poll
1. Dubuque (21-7, 14-2 A-R-C) - 61 points
2. Wartburg (16-10, 9-7 A-R-C) - 55 points
T-3. Buena Vista (15-12, 11-5 A-R-C) - 44 points
T-3. Nebraska Wesleyan (14-12, 8-8 A-R-C) - 44 points
5. Loras (18-9, 9-7 A-R-C) - 41 points
6. Coe (20-7, 11-5 A-R-C) - 35 points
7. Simpson (5-20, 2-14 A-R-C) - 21 points
8. Central (7-17, 4-12 A-R-C) - 16 points
9. Luther (8-17, 4-12 A-R-C) - 12 points