Former Ankeny Centennial basketball star Luke Winkel was named to the NSIC all-tournament team after leading regular-season champion St. Cloud State to a runner-up finish in the conference tournament.
The 19th-ranked Huskies dropped a 76-65 decision to sixth-seeded Minnesota Duluth in the NSIC championship game on Tuesday at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. The loss snapped St. Cloud State’s 18-game winning streak and was the Huskies’ first loss in 2026.
Winkel finished with 20 points, two rebounds and three assists. The sophomore guard went 4-of-11 from 3-point range while scoring 20+ points for the 14th time this season.
Winkel was joined on the all-tournament team by St. Cloud State teammate Wyatt Hawks. Hawks had 12 points, seven rebounds and three blocks in the loss.
Minnesota Duluth took control of the game late in the first half, when Caleb Siwek made all four of his 3-point attempts in the final 3 minutes 25 seconds to give the Bulldogs a 43-32 lead at the break. Siwek scored 19 of his 34 points in the first half and was later named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.
Winkel averaged nearly 25 points a game in the tournament. He racked up 29 points, three rebounds, four assists and three steals in a 78-66 win over Sioux Falls in Saturday’s quarterfinals.
Winkel then scored 25 points in an 87-82 victory over Minnesota State in Monday’s semifinals. He went 3-of-5 from behind the arc and 10-of-11 at the free-throw line.
The Huskies (25-6) will now await their fate on Selection Sunday at 10 p.m. on March 8 to determine if they will play in the NCAA Tournament.
SCSU was ranked No. 5 in the latest Central Region rankings with the newest rankings to be released on Thursday. The top eight teams in the region will make the tournament.