Junior guard Jake Velky stunned the Maryville University crowd with a game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer. This brought his career total to 1,003 points, and he was able to become the 29th member of the Bulldogs’ 1,000-point club.
Velky was unaware he was close to 1,000 points until his teammate, redshirt senior forward Zach Fischer, mentioned it to him during warmups before the game. Velky said it is a great feeling and a real accomplishment for him to reach this milestone as a junior, but the real credit goes to his teammates throughout the years.
Velky is not the only one to reach 1,000 career points against Maryville. Almost exactly a year before Velky, alumnus Cory Myers reached this milestone his senior year.
Not only did Velky reach 1,000 points against the Saints, but he scored the game-winning shot on the last play with just milliseconds to spare on the clock. Velky said he can’t remember much of what happened, but watching it on film was a sweet feeling.
Velky might be in the Truman record books, but he said his focus is still improving and growing as a team, especially as postseason continues to approach.
“We knew we were going to be young, and we came out of preseason with some injuries and knew that we had a tough schedule in the beginning,” Velky said. “We wanted to grow together as a team, and I feel like we’ve done that, and we are starting to play better here towards the end, and that’s when it matters.”
Truman moves to 12-7 overall and 7-3 in the GLVC. Next up, they travel to Drury University for a 7:30 p.m. game Thursday night in Springfield, Missouri.
For more information about Velky’s accomplishments, pick up a copy of The Index on Thursday, Feb. 1.