Carthage College men's basketball guard Malcom Kelly (Sr., Kenosha, Wis./Reuther), who was named 2012 first-team All-College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin, will not play this season.  Kelly enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserves and will undergo basic training at Fort Benning in Columbus, Ga., beginning in January. 

Kelly, who served three years in the U.S. Navy before enrolling at Carthage in 2009-10, plans to return to Carthage for his final year of eligibility in 2013-14.  He started all 25 games last season, led the CCIW in scoring (19.4 points per game) and was ranked second in steals (1.84 per game), fourth in free-throw percentage (.832), sixth in minutes played (32.24 per game) and ninth in three-point field-goal percentage (.400).

"As things have unfolded this season," said Carthage coach Bosko Djurickovic in the Dec. 30 Kenosha News, "we sure as heck could have used him.  He's an awfully good player.  Sometimes, I'm most interested in the kids who don't have it easy.  I appreciate when people can get through doing it the hard way.  Malcom Kelly is not your normal 18-year-old recruit whose family has a lot of money, and everything is easy for him.  He's a non-traditional student--let alone a non-traditional college basketball player.  Guys like that are to be admired."