Hall of Fame
Coming to North Central College from a small town in Wisconsin, Steve Hoeft ’73 wasn’t sure if he could compete at the collegiate level against players in the Chicagoland area, having limited exposure against those outside of his high school conference. Hoeft quickly learned that he could, setting the program record for total assists in a single season (122) and assists per game (5.1) during his sophomore year.
"When I got to North Central, I saw guys from Chicago and the big suburban schools, and at first, I wasn’t sure I could stack up against them. But before the season started, we played pickup games up in old Smith Hall. As we kept playing, I started to feel more comfortable. Once I realized I could compete at that level, everything else started to fall into place," he said.
On Dec. 29, 1971, Hoeft went 10-for-10 from the field, tying a record for best shooting percentage in program history as the Cardinals defeated Central Methodist, 84-79. Everything fell into place during his junior season, as he earned First Team All-College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin honors in 1971–72 — becoming just the sixth player in program history to be named to the First Team. During that season, the Cardinals routed Aurora University, 119–58, the largest winning margin in school history and, at the time, the second-most points scored in a game. At the time of induction, the 1971-72 squad holds the program record for scoring average in a season with 86.9 points per game. Even more impressive, Hoeft and his teams played without the three-point line.
"We had fun playing basketball my senior season," he said. "That year was probably the best for me—not necessarily in terms of wins, but in terms of where I was personally and where the team was. It all just came together in a meaningful way."
Following his senior season, he became the second member of the 1,000-point club and was the program leader in career assists (308) and assists per game (3.2) while ranking in the top five in career points (1,660), career rebounds (800), free throws made (310) and field goals made (675).
