Trailing by as many as eight points in the second half, the Central College men’s basketball team mounted a steady comeback late in the game to claim an impressive 74-66 win over Buena Vista University in last night’s Iowa Conference season debut.

Brock Caves buried a clutch three-pointer for the Dutch to tie the game at 61-61 with just over five minutes remaining, and Central never trailed again, as Demarco Turner closed out the game at the free-throw line.

Central utilized a combination of gritty defense and fundamentally sound play on the glass to prevent the Beavers from utilizing their size and strength inside, as the Dutch won the rebounding battle 35-30.

Turner’s late free throws gave him a team-high 18 points in the Central win, while Jacob Winkler put together a packed stat sheet that included 9 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocks.

The Dutch had eight players score five points or more, which allowed them to overcome an impressive showing by BV guard Michael Kaufmann, who finished with a game-high 20 points.

The win has the Central men’s basketball team off to a 4-1 start overall, and puts them at 1-0 in the Iowa Conference. Up next for the Dutch is another league contest on Saturday at Cornell College in Mount Vernon.