For the 14th time in school history, the Pella Christian boys basketball team takes the court in the state tournament semifinals this morning. In order to make it to their ninth championship game, and first since 2017, they’ll have to knock off top-seeded Central Lyon.

The Lions finished the regular season ranked number one with an 18-1 record and have buzzed through their four postseason games with an average margin of victory of 24. They’re also the top ranked team in the BC Moore computer rankings.

Meanwhile, Pella Christian went 12-9 against a brutal regular season schedule, and after blowing out Cardinal in the playoff opener, they’ve won their last three tournament tilts by less than four points per game. BC Moore has the Lions as a 10-point favorite, but Eagles junior guard Tysen DeVries says that he and his teammates know they have a good opportunity in front of themselves today.

“It’s going to be a tough game, and a lot of people say, well, they’re the number one seed. But, like I said earlier, why not us. We just have to play our ball, play fast and play free, play together and believe in each other.”

Tipoff is at 10:30 this morning at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. Join Trevor Castle and Wynne Veenstra for all of the action, beginning with pregam at 10:00 on 92.1 KRLS.