The Newton boys and girls basketball teams return to Little Hawkeye Conference action tonight with a road trip to Dallas Center Grimes. 

The Cardinal boys, who are 3-0 overall and 1-0 in the conference, have been off since last Friday’s 64-56 overtime win at Indianola. Newton Coach Jason Carter says tonight’s game is the first of two tough conference match-ups before the Christmas break.

“We get DCG and Pella in our next two before Christmas. Both are going to be really good basketball teams. So we have to do the little things right on a night in and night out basis.“

The Dallas Center Grimes boys are 1-2, and have yet to play a conference game. They defeated Ames on Tuesday 63-50, but fell to Des Moines Christian 57-49 and  ADM 84-81.

The Newton girls basketball team is 4-1 overall and 0-1 in the conference,and are coming off a 67-15 victory over Des Moines East Tuesday night. Cardinals head coach Jake Bennett expects the team will need to be ready to deal with Dallas Center Grimes’s pressing defense.

“We will expect them to come out and be an aggressive team as far as their press and making shots. I don’t think there will be too much surprising there. “

The Dallas Center Grimes girls are ranked 10th in Class 4A with a 4-1 overall record. The Mustangs earned wins against Ballard, ADM, Des Moines Christian, and Ames, while suffering their only loss of the young season to Class 4A #2 North Polk. 

Newton basketball doubleheader at Dallas Center Grimes tonight can be heard live on KRLS3, beginning with pregame coverage at 5:45 pm. The girls game will tip-off at 6:00 p.m., with the boys game set to begin at approximately 7:30 p.m.