You know the basketball season is near when shooting is on-point, new talent is being showcased and men are flying right out of Cowles Fieldhouse.

Wednesday night marked the third annual Hoopapalooza where the Simpson College men’s and women’s basketball teams took part in the slam dunk contest, the three point contest as well as the men’s team scrimmaging.

The evening started out testing to see who would be crowned as having more range. The men just slid in safely to outshoot the women’s team 43 three pointers to 42 three pointers.

In the slam dunk contest, the contestants were senior Elijah Knox, junior Drew Bentley, sophomores Austin Hennings and Austin Stumbo, and freshmen Jared Stansbury and Joe Peterson. The contestants were fairly evenly matched, but an impressive dunk by Henning’s off of the shot clock, and several high flying jams by Stumbo guaranteed their tickets to the finals.

Unfortunately Stumbo couldn’t capitalize on his dunk and Hennings had a nice alley-oop which won him the dunk contest.

The final event was the men’s scrimmage where the team for this year displayed their talents in two twenty minute halves. The sides were evenly matched where it came down to the final seconds. The white team came away with the win as they beat the black team 49-48. Bentley, Stansbury and Hennings all impressed during the scrimmage. Henning’s is going to have some big shoes to fill as he will be taking the spot of Cornelius Mosby, who at his time at Simpson was a major presence inside the paint.

What happens to be a fun event every year, this year turned out to be much of the same.

Now that Hoopapalooza has come and gone in the blink of an eye, the Storm basketball teams will make their season opener in a little over a week. The Men’s Team will tip off the season opener next Friday, November 16, where they will be taking on Bethel at 8 p.m. in the Bethel Tournament.

The women’s opener will also take place next Friday, November 16, where they will be facing Wisconsin La Crosse in the Wisconsin Eau-Claire Tournament. Tip off for them will be at 6 p.m.