LINCOLN, NEB. — A high-scoring affair broke out Wednesday night in Lincoln, Neb. when Iowa Conference champion Nebraska Wesleyan University defeated the Central College men's basketball team 104-80.

Central (10-14, 7-8 conference play) faced a 49-30 halftime deficit but cut the Prairie Wolves (22-3, 13-3 conference play) to 10 points three minutes after the break. The Dutch were within 12 with 13:52 left in the game before the Prairie Wolves finished the game on a 46-34 run. According to coach Craig Douma, foul trouble played a part in the finishing run.

"We had a couple of guys that battled foul trouble all night," he said. "Once we had to sub we lost the momentum we had going."

Central senior forward Kyle Smith (Grand River, New Hampton HS) had 18 points, a season-high seven assists and three rebounds.

"I thought Kyle had a good night tonight, he caught fire for a bit in the second half and played really well," said Douma.

Battling foul trouble, senior forward Malik Wildermuth (Normal, Ill., University HS) played just 20 minutes, 10 less than his season average. Wildermuth had 12 points, four assists, three steals and two rebounds.

"Malik did a nice job when he was out there tonight," said Douma. "Unfortunately, he wasn't out there his normal amount due to his foul situation. Once we had to sub him out it put us in a tough spot."

Junior guard Jamel McKnight (Austin, Texas, Hendrickson HS) battled foul trouble as well, playing 26 minutes, scoring 11 points, five rebounds and two assists.

"Jamel played well but again had to come out with his fouls," said Douma.

Senior guard Nick Drucker (Grimes, Dallas Center-Grimes HS) scored 10 points and dished two assists before he fouled out.

The foul count finished 24-14 with Central having five players with three or more fouls.

Nebraska Wesleyan outshot Central 60.3 percent to 45.3 and outrebounded the Dutch 36-24.

"They're a good team and really shot the ball well tonight," said Douma. "They play five guys over 30 minutes and they all can score."

Central will honor eight seniors Saturday afternoon when Wartburg College comes to Pella for a women's-men's doubleheader with the men beginning at 4 p.m. in P.H. Kuyper Gymnasium. A webcast and live stats can be found at athletics.central.edu.

With a victory, the Dutch clinch a spot in the league tournament. The top two seeds of the tournament have been decided with the Prairie Wolves earning the top seed and Loras College securing the second seed. The tournament begins Tuesday evening with the No. 3 seed hosting No. 6 seed and No. 4 seed hosting No. 5 seed.

"We know what we have to do Saturday," said Douma. "It's going to be a great time with Senior Day and playing Wartburg for a chance to get into the (conference) tournament. We couldn't be more excited to play in front of the KuyperKrazies."