Men's Basketball: Central Opens 2026 vs NIACC

The Central Community College men's basketball team hosted NIACC Community College at home, on Saturday, January 3rd. A recap of the match is below:

Despite a strong start and a double-digit scoring performance from three different players, Central Community College couldn't hold off a second-half surge by NIACC, falling 81-72. The Raiders controlled the first half, heading into the locker room with a 39-31 lead, fueled by Mo Abdalla's game-high 23 points and a perfect 6-for-6 shooting effort off the bench from Merkv Torrance. However, the Raiders struggled to contain NIACC in the final 20 minutes, being outscored 50-33 in the second frame. While Central shot a respectable 42.4% from the field, they were plagued by a significant disparity at the free-throw line, where they attempted 15 fewer shots than North Iowa.

The Raiders move to 8-7 and are in action January 5th, Monday night for a continuation of the 12/13 matchup with WIT.