The Thunder men's basketball staff have completed their 2025 recruiting class and have signed eight total newcomers that include two transfers, one junior college transfer and a NAIA transfer, and six high school seniors. The newest Thunder men's basketball student-athletes are:

TRANSFERS

James Braddy - 5'9, Junior, Guard - Southwestern Community College (IA)

Led the Spartans to 26 wins in two seasons. Played in 57 games and started 43 games in those two seasons for the Spartans. In two seasons, Braddy averaged 16.2 minutes per game and 7.6 points on 38.5% shooting from the field, including 38.5% from the 3-point line, to go along with 2.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.2 steals. He also shot 85.6% from the free throw line. Prepped at Plattsburg High School in Plattsburg, Missouri.

Hunter Hill - 6'5, Junior, Forward - Hastings College

Part of the Broncos program for two seasons. As a sophomore, Hill played in 27 games and started in 13 for the Broncos. Hill averaged 13.5 minutes per game and 4.6 points on 54.0% shooting from the field, including 50.0% from the 3-point line, to go along with 2.1 rebounds. He also shot 76.5% from the free throw line. High school teammates with redshirt-sophomore, guard, Peyton Torres. Prepped at Eagle Ridge Academy in Brighton, Colorado.

FRESHMAN

Jayden Brown - 5'8, Freshman, Guard - Andover Central High School (KS)

Led the Jaguars to a 14-9 record and a 5A KSHSAA Sub-State Championship as a senior. Brown averaged 16.4 points per game on 41.7% shooting from the field, including 39.5% from the 3-point line, to go along with 3.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.3 steals. He also shot 72.7% from the free throw line. Made 62 3-pointers to lead all of 4A, 5A, and 6A in Kansas. Finished as Andover Central's all-time leader in career 3-pointer made with 161. Named First Team All-Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail and 5A Player of the Year finalist as a senior. Ranked as the 20th player in the state of Kansas by Prep Hoops and the 29th by Recruit Look.

Trayden Chambers - 6'6, Freshman, Forward - Dale High School (OK)

Led the Pirates to a 30-2 record, the 2A OSSAA State Championship, and a #1 finish in the Small Town Top 25 high school national rankings by MaxPreps as a senior. Chambers averaged 12.7 points per game on 63.7% shooting from the field, including 26.7% from the 3-point line, to go along with 6.1 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 1.0 steals. He also shot 75.0% from the free throw line. Finished career with four 2A OSSAA State Championships and a 121-6 overall record. Named to the 2A All-Tournament and All-State teams, as well as Third Team Little All-City by The Oklahoman. Ranked as the 38th player in the state of Oklahoma by Prep Hoops.

Colby Frehe - 6'8, Freshman, Forward - Nemaha Central High School (KS)

Led the Thunder to a 19-3 record as a senior. Frehe averaged 11.0 points per game on 58.5% shooting from the field, including 31.8% from the 3-point line, to go along with 10.2 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 1.2 steals, and 3.4 blocks. He also shot 63.0% from the free throw line. Named First Team All-Big East as a senior. Ranked as the 74th player in the state of Kansas by Recruit Look.

Alessandro Rodriguez - 6'0, Freshman, Guard - Trinity Academy (KS)

Led the Knights to a 11-10 record as a senior. Rodriguez averaged 6.5 points per game, to go along with 3.0 rebounds. Coached by MCC alum, Nate Awbrey. Also lettered in soccer at Trinity.

Trent Webber - 6'2, Freshman, Guard - Riley County High School (KS)

Led the Falcons to five wins as a senior. Webber averaged 7.0 points per game on 44.0% shooting from the field, including 25.0% from the 3-point line, to go along with 3.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 1.1 steals. He also shot 59.4% from the free throw line. Also lettered in football at Riley County.

Kyler Wenger - 6'0, Freshman, Guard - Sabetha High School (KS)

Led the Bluejays to a 13-10 record as a senior. Wenger averaged 13.0 points per game, to go along with 4.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 2.5 steals. Named Second Team All-Big East as a senior. High school teammates with junior, forward, Davis Rokey and sophomore, guard, Marcus Bauman. Also lettered in football and baseball at Sabetha. Ranked as the 128th player in the state of Kansas by Recruit Look.

Head coach Jordan Strom had this to say about her most recent recruiting class, “I’m excited for these guys to get to Manhattan. This group has an opportunity to do some special things this season and this class will be a big part of that. I can’t wait to see everyone in the HAC cheering these guys on this season!”

The Thunder will release their 2025-26 schedule in the coming weeks.

Tickets for the 2025-26 season will be posted to the SidelineTix website and app later this fall. To purchase tickets, fans can visit www.mccthunder.com and click the "Get Tickets" tab.

How to Follow the Thunder: For complete information and to stay up-to-date with Manhattan Christian College Men's Basketball, visit www.mccthunder.com and follow the team's social media pages on X and Instagram.

The Thunder men's basketball team capped off their season about two weeks ago with a trip to the NCCAA National Tournament, their 20th appearance as a program, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Thunder would win their 23rd Midwest Christian College Conference Regular Season Title, 16th MCCC Tournament Championship, reach their eighth Final Four in program history and finish the season ranked #4 in the NCCAA Men's Basketball Coaches' Poll. To go along with the team accolades, many individual awards were earned.

Sophomore, forward, Davis Rokey would be named a First Team All-American, Central Region MVP and a First Team nod, and First Team All-MCCC honors. Rokey would also break the single season record for total rebounds by grabbing 336 rebounds, breaking a 15-year-old record held by Charles Page. The sophomore would also lead the team in scoring (16.7 points), field goal percentage (58.7%), and blocks (1.1 blocks). Senior, forward, Cody Mericle would earn NCCAA Scholar-Athlete honors making Mericle a two-time scholar-athlete during his tenure at MCC. Mericle averaged 6.5 points on 48.9% shooting from the field, 37.0% shooting from three, to go along with 4.8 rebounds and would also be named to the NCCAA National Tournament All-Tournament Team. Senior, guard, Micah Lovett would take home First Team All-Region and Second Team All-MCCC honors to close out his college career. Lovett averaged 12.3 points, 3.0 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and led the team with 1.8 steals, while shooting 74.8% from the free throw line. Junior, guard, Jaxon Hurla would earn Second Team All-Region and All-MCCC Honorable Mention. Hurla averaged 10.7 points on 36.4% shooting from three, 2.8 rebounds, led the team with 3.4 assists, and 1.1 steals in a team leading 27.2 minutes per game. The final student-athlete to earn a postseason honor is junior, guard, Xavier Lucas who was a Second Team All-MCCC member. Lucas scored 10.9 points per game on 46.9% shooting from the field and 32.3% shooting from three, to go along with 7.7 rebounds and 1.2 steals on the season.

Junior, Landon Gray would average 8.0 points on a team leading 37.4% shooting from three and 80.0% from the free throw line. Junior, Fred Criqui would average 5.4 points on 57.1% shooting from the field, to go along with 4.0 rebounds per game. Redshirt sophomore, Jordan Carter would average 5.2 points, while freshman, Tatum Pierce would chip in with 4.8 points on 52.3% shooting from the field.

The Thunder would conclude their season at 23-13 making it the third 20-win season in four years. Over the past six seasons, the Thunder have compiled a 126-67 record with a 65.3% winning percentage. The Thunder are also 62-4 in MCCC regular season games over that span. Head coach Jordan Strom would also earn some honors being named the NCCAA Central Region Coach of the Year, as well as the NCCAA National Coach of the Year. This would be the third time in program history that a Thunder coach has won this award as Shawn Condra won the award twice during his tenure.

Strom had this to say about the 2024-25 season, “I’m proud of what our team accomplished this season. They came together and played for one another and it was evident every time they stepped on the floor. I’m grateful for our seniors and the legacy that they have left and couldn’t be more excited to get back to work!”

We want to thank all of the fans, students, faculty and staff for supporting our men's soccer team this season! We look forward to next season. Roll Thunder!

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After a 23 win season, a conference regular season and tournament title, and Final Four appearance, the Thunder men's basketball team finished the season ranked #4 in the nation in the final postseason NCCAA Coaches' Poll. The Thunder finish ranked behind national champion North Central, national runner-up Spurgeon, and the third place team Crown with 42 total points. Since 2019-20, the Thunder have been to NCCAA National Tournament five times and have made the Final Four three times with a national championship match appearance in 2022-23. For the full final postseason top-10 rankings for DII Men's Basketball, click this link.

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The Thunder men's basketball team had senior, forward, Cody Mericle represent the Thunder on the NCCAA DII Men's Basketball National Tournament All-Tournament team at the conclusion of the tournament in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Merilce would be named to the 2025 All-Tournament team and would average 6.7 points on 44.4% shooting from the field, and 6.3 rebounds in three games, while being the primary defender on the opposing team's best player. The Thunder finish the season with 23 wins, a conference regular season and tournament title, and a Final Four appearance. To see the full list of the NCCAA DII men's basketball All-Tournament team, click this link.

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The Thunder men's basketball team have earned more individual accolades this season with these being at the national level. Sophomore forward, Davis Rokey was named to the NCCAA All-American teams. Rokey has swept the first-team awards this season as he was a first-team All-Conference, All-Region, as well as MVP of the region, and All-American. Head Coach, Jordan Strom would be named the NCCAA National Coach of the Year after leading the Thunder to a 22-11 record.

The Thunder would also have one player earn NCCAA Scholar-Athlete honors. To be a NCCAA Scholar-Athlete the player must be a junior, senior, or graduate student, be a competing student-athlete or a varsity letter winner, and they must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.40. Senior, forward, Cody Mericle would earn Scholar-Athlete honors. Mericle would finish his career by being named a two-time Scholar-Athlete. To see the full list of NCCAA DII men's basketball All-Americans and Scholar-Athletes, click this link.

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The Thunder men's basketball team had the opportunity to play one last time together for the 2024-25 season in a third place game against the Crown College Polars at the NCCAA National Tournament. The Thunder came out strong to start the game, but would fall behind 42-32 at the half. A slow start to the second half would see the Thunder call an early timeout. The Thunder would cut the Polar lead down to 13, but the deficit would be to large to overcome and the Thunder would drop the third place game 94-67.

The Thunder would shoot 35.9% from the field, 38.1% from the three-point line, and 72.2% from the free throw line. Sophomore, Davis Rokey would record his 13th double-double on the season with 21 points on 9-15 shooting and grabbing 10 rebounds. Redshirt sophomore, Jordan Carter would have 11 points, three assists and two steals, while junior, Landon Gray would have nine points for the Thunder. By collecting 10 rebounds, Rokey became the single season record holder for total rebounds with 336 passing Charles Page's mark in 2010-11.

The Thunder finish the season with a 23-13 record, a Midwest Christian College Conference Regular Season and Tournament Championship, and a Final Four appearance.

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The Thunder men's basketball team made their eighth NCCAA Final Four appearance and took on the Spurgeon College Knights on Friday evening. The #3 seed Thunder jumped all over the #2 seed Knights and led 13-1 to start. The Thunder would take a 47-39 lead into the half and be in a back and forth battle throughout the second half. The Knights would take the lead with 14:15, but the Thunder would regain the lead with 9:52 remaining in the game. Second chances and free throws would close the game out for the Knights and the Thunder would fall 92-85.

The Thunder would shoot 39.7% from the field, 35.3% from the three-point line, and 80.6% from the free throw line. Senior, Micah Lovett would lead the Thunder with 19 points, going 12-12 from the free throw line, five rebounds, and six assists. Sophomore, Davis Rokey would have a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Juniors, Xavier Lucas and Jaxon Hurla would chip in with 12 points and 10 points, respectively.

The Thunder will play in the third place game tomorrow against the host the Crown College Polars at 2:45 PM.

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The Thunder men's basketball team open play at the 2025 NCCAA National Tournament on Thursday afternoon. The Thunder would battle with the #6 seed Campbellsville University-Harrodsburg Pioneers and would pull off a gritty win, 72-69, to advance to the Final Four on Friday evening. This will be the Thunder's eighth appearance in the NCCAA Tournament Final Four since being affiliated with the NCCAA in 1994. The Thunder and Pioneers would be in a back-and-forth affair all game as their would be 19 lead changes and 15 ties throughout the entirety of the game. The game would be tied 38-38 going into the half. The Pioneer would take the largest lead of the game, a seven point lead with 7:51 to go. A 7-0 by the Thunder would tie the game at 59. The Thunder would fall behind by five with 2:44 left before an 8-0 run would close out the game and lead the Thunder to victory.

The Thunder would shoot 40.7% from the field, 25.0% from the three-point line, and 75.0% from the free throw line. Junior, Xavier Lucas would pace the Thunder with 20 points on 4-6 shooting from the field and 10-11 shooting from the free throw line, to go along with nine rebounds. Fellow junior, Jaxon Hurla would have 12 points, five rebounds, and two steals, while senior, Cody Mericle would have nine points and 10 rebounds. The Thunder would out-rebound the Pioneers 43-25 on the afternoon.

The Thunder will play in the NCCAA National Tournament Semifinal against the #2 seed Spurgeon College Knights tomorrow at 5:00 PM.

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The Thunder men's basketball team will head to the NCCAA National Tournament in Minneapolis, Minnesota as the lone at-large selection and the #3 seed in the eight-team tournament. The Thunder have earned the #3 seed after winning the Midwest Christian College Conference Tournament and finishing the season with a 22-11 overall record. The Thunder will open tournament play on Thursday, March 13th against the #6 seed Campbellsville University-Harrodsburg Pioneers. This game will tip at 2:45 PM. The Thunder and Pioneers are familiar opponents as they have met in the last two NCCAA National Tournaments that the Thunder have appeared in.

For more information on the NCCAA National Tournament, visit the thenccaa.org.

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The Thunder men's basketball team entered the 2025 NCCAA Central Region Tournament hosted by Central Christian College of the Bible in Moberly, MO as the two seed and would win their quarterfinal game over the seven seed the Barclay Bears and would fall in the semifinal to the three seed Kansas Christian College Falcons. On Tuesday, the Thunder would take on the Bears in a quarterfinal matchup. The Thunder would jump out to an 8-0 lead and never look back. A 54-37 lead into the half would keep the Bears away and the Thunder would earn the victory 100-69.

The Thunder would shoot 52.9% from the field, 57.1% from the three-point line, and 78.3% from the free throw line. Five players would score in double-figures and the Thunder would out-rebound the Bears 55-25. Junior, Xavier Lucas would have a double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Davis Rokey would have a double-double of his own with 16 points and 15 rebounds. Senior, Micah Lovett would have 15 points, four assists, and five steals, while freshman, Tatum Pierce had 14 points on 7-10 shooting.

On Wednesday night, the Thunder would play in the semifinal game against the Falcons from Kansas Christian. The Thunder would get behind early and would be outplayed by the Falcons and fall by a score of 79-69. The Thunder would be down 45-31 at the half and turn the ball over a total of 22 times. The Thunder would battle and cut the Falcon lead down to six in the second half, but would be in too big of a hole to climb out of.

The Thunder would shoot 39.3% from the field, 34.8% from the three-point line, and 92.9% from the free throw line. Lovett would have 23 points on 9-16 shooting from the field, while Lucas would have another double-double with 19 points and 14 rebounds. Senior, Cody Mericle would chip in with eight points and four rebounds.

The Thunder will await their fate once all of the region tournaments conclude next week. After two games in the region tournament, they have an overall record of 22-11.

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