Central men’s basketball squad outlasts Grand View
Central College
DES MOINES — The Central College men’s basketball team led by as many as 21 Thursday night at Grand View before needing a Viking miss at the buzzer to preserve a 72-70 victory.
Central’s largest lead came at the 1:24 mark of the first half and the Dutch (7-1) took a 52-31 lead into halftime. The Vikings (5-5) battled back in the second half, but Central looked to be in control, up by eight with just 1:30 left in the contest. However, Grand View nailed 3-pointers on its next two possessions, cutting the Dutch lead to 69-67 with just 30 ticks left on the clock.
After a pair of makes at the charity stripe by sophomore guard Kyle Smith (Ionia/New Hampton HS), Central held a five-point advantage with under 10 seconds remaining. The Vikings then connected on their third straight 3-pointer, followed by a quick foul and two Dutch misses at the free throw line. That gave Grand View the ball, down two with three seconds to go, but the final heave was off the mark.
Douma credited Grand View coming out of the half.
“They made some key adjustments,” he said. “They picked up the intensity and we didn’t answer right away. It’s hard when everything is so easy in the first half for us and then (Grand View) turns it around coming out of the break.”
But he likes what he saw from his team late.
“It’s great to find a way to win a game like this,” Douma said. “We battled and found some ways to score down the stretch. It shows that we know how to close out the tight games.”
The Dutch shot 41 percent from the floor, their lowest mark of the season and scored a season-low 20 points in the second half. Grand View shot 42 percent and outrebounded the Dutch 40-37.
Junior forward Colby Taylor (Creston) recorded his third double-double of the season and the 15th of his career, scoring a game-high 28 points, while bringing down 13 boards.
“Colby did a good job of getting transition baskets tonight,” Douma said. “The defense was giving him some good looks and he took advantage of it.”
Junior forwards Ryan Kunkel (Solon) and Austin Glawe (Aurelia/Sioux Central HS) both scored in double-figures with 13 and 12 points, respectively. Kunkel added three block and three rebounds.
The Dutch get a week off to focus on finals before a road contest with Martin Luther (Minn.) Dec. 19 at 6 p.m. Central took down the Knights 109-50 in Pella last season.
“This week off will be really good for our guys,” Douma said. “It will let them lock in on their academics and finish the semester strong. That’s the focus right now.”
