Central Athletics News February 9 Pt 2
Central College
Central men handle Simpson 74-55
PELLA—Avenging an 82-72 loss earlier this season, the Central College men’s basketball secured an early lead and never looked back, even when playing shorthanded from illness and injury, to capture a 74-55 victory over Simpson College Wednesday night.
The Dutch sprinted out to an 8-0 lead nearly three minutes before Simpson (9-13, 6-7 conference) rallied with a 5-0 run to close the gap to three. But three points was as close as the Storm got.
Central (12-10, 8-6 conference) took a 29-24 advantage into the break. An 11-2 run, fueled by three 3-pointers – two by guard Demarco Turner (senior, Des Moines, East HS), gave the Dutch a 16-point lead with 11 minutes left to play. Central extended its lead to 25 before the final whistle blew.
“It was nice to see us play good, solid Central basketball with teamwork, toughness and good defense,” coach Mike Boschee said. “Usually when we play that way, good things happen.”
Shorthanded without starter James Chapline (forward, senior, Ogden) because of illness, the Dutch also lost guard Brock Caves (junior, Douds, Van Buren HS) halfway through the game from injury.
“I thought our guys did a real nice job of stepping up when we were a little short-handed,” Boschee said. “Our bench really came through. I thought KJ Cool (guard, sophomore, Newton, Mo., Harris R-3 HS) was especially really good filling in and Demarco did a nice job moving to point guard, where he doesn’t normally play.”
Turner led the Dutch with 22 points, including four buckets behind the arc, and seven assists. He moves into third place on the leaderboard for 3-point field goals made in a season with 61.
Forward Jack Bruns (junior, Story City, Roland-Story HS) posted 13 points while Cool hit three 3-pointers on his way to 11 points. Forward Jacob Winkler (sophomore, Lancaster, Mo., Schuyler R-1 HS) dished out six assists and forward Chris Lehmann (junior, Champaign, Ill., Central HS) snagged a career-high 14 rebounds.
“Chris did a nice job defensively on their big guys,” Boschee said. “When we get that kind of effort from our guys inside, it makes it tough on other teams.”
Central shot 39.7 percent from the floor, including 53.6 percent in the second half, and was 45.5 percent from 3-point range.
The Dutch finish their last two regular season games on the road, facing Cornell College Saturday at 4 p.m. in Mount Vernon before tackling Buena Vista in Storm Lake Feb. 19.
“We’ve been a good road team this year,” Boschee said. “I hope we can get back to doing the things we need to do to win. We need to guard teams, we need to play together and we need to play smart.”
The Dutch clinched a 77-70 win over Cornell earlier this season in Pella. Cornell (7-15, 2-11 conference) topped Iowa Conference leader Luther College 55-49 Wednesday night in Decorah.
Simpson races past shorthanded Central women
PELLA—Shorthanded because of illness was not a good way for the Central College women’s basketball team to go into a fast-paced game with Iowa Conference Simpson College Wednesday.
The Dutch couldn’t keep up, getting outscored 106-55. Starting forward Kelsey Schuring (junior, Pella) was unable to play because of illness while forward Haley Brillhart (junior, Pella) was limited to 7 minutes of action.
Simpson (18-4 overall, 12-1 conference) used its full-court press to roll up a 66-25 halftime lead and coasted to the win. Central was outshot 52.9 percent to 32.2 while getting outrebounded 47-37.
“It’s tough not having Kelsey, and Haley could hardly go but that doesn’t lose the game for you,” coach Jerry Nikkel said. “Simpson’s a very talented team. They really pushed the ball tonight. They did a nice job.”
Central forward Nicole Strasko (sophomore, Roland, Roland-Story HS) had 14 points and eight rebounds in 23 minutes of action. Guard Cory Bacon (junior, Garwin, GMG HS) had four assists.
“Nicole did a nice job,” Nikkel said. “She was giving up 4 or 5 inches to everyone who was guarding her.
“I thought everybody we put in there played hard tonight.”
Central travels to Mount Vernon Saturday for a women’s-men’s doubleheader at Cornell College. The Dutch were 72-54 winners over Cornell at Pella Jan. 15. Cornell is 7-13 overall and 2-11 in the league after a 66-54 setback at Luther Wednesday.
“We’re not going to waste any time thinking about this one tonight,” Nikkel said. “We need to put a couple of good practices in and get ready for Saturday.”
