Dutch men’s basketball team falls in tight conference game
Central College
PELLA — After trailing by as many as 15 in the second half the Central College men’s basketball stormed back to within one but couldn’t complete the comeback Wednesday in a 69-67 loss.
Dutch (9-7 overall, 2-3 Iowa Conference) forward Colby Taylor (sophomore, Creston) was fouled shooting a 3-pointer and made all three free throws to trim the Beavers’ lead to two, 64-62 with 1:04 to play. After a Buena Vista (11-5, 4-1) free throw extended the lead to three both teams had a turnover and a missed shot.
The teams then traded free throws until the Beavers led by three with seven seconds left. Buena Vista fouled guard Nile Eckermann (senior, Cosgrove, Clear Creek Amana HS) before he could attempt a game-tying shot. He made the first and missed the second at the line. After two misses by Buena Vista at the line a Dutch half court heave at the buzzer fell short and the Beavers held on to win 69-67.
Buena Vista entered the game 19th in Division III in scoring, averaging 81 points per game and shooting 49 percent as a team. The Dutch held the Beavers well below both season averages, allowing Buena Vista to score just 69 points on 38 percent shooting. Offensively Central scored 67 points, 12 below its season average, and shot 30 percent, 13 percent below its season average.
“We played good enough defense tonight,” said coach Craig Douma. “We just didn’t shoot it well tonight. We have to knock down shots. We had too many looks down the stretch that didn’t go down.”
Eckermann led all scorers with 21 points. He was 5-for-17 from the field, 3-for-10 from beyond the arc and 8-for-9 at the line.
“Nile played a good game,” said Douma. “He kind of kept us in the ballgame. He is playing really well right now and our guys did a nice job of finding him.”
Forward Kyle Newendorp (senior, Pella) picked up his third double-double of the season with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Taylor was also in double figures with 13 points and eight rebounds.
Douma was pleased with the performance of several players off the bench including forward Mitchell Boerm (sophomore, Traer, North Tama HS), forward Jayson Shepherd (senior, Jewel, South Hamilton HS) and guard Drew Moore (senior, Blue Springs, Mo.)
“I thought we had some key subs come in the game,” said Douma. “(Boerm, Shepherd and Moore) all came in and contributed and stepped up. They played some quality minutes for us.”
The Central coach liked the fact that his team didn’t give up after falling behind early in the second half. A 14-0 run by the Beavers gave them a 50-35 lead with 16 minutes to play. Central responded. In the 15 minutes after Beaver’s the run the Dutch outscored Buena Vista 27-12 to pull back within two.
“I’m proud of our effort,” said Douma. “We did a great job of battling back and getting back in the ballgame.”
The Dutch will be at home again Saturday to face Coe (10-6, 4-1) at 4 p.m. The game will be broadcasted by KRLS-FM (92.1). The broadcast can also be accessed through www.kniakrls.com.
