Kicking off a busy week on the road, the Pella Christian boys basketball team needed an extra five minutes to hold off Centerville Monday night for a 70-67 non-conference overtime victory.

The Eagles started off strong in the contest, building up a 20-14 advantage at the end of the first quarter. The Big Reds chipped into that lead slightly before halftime, winning the second quarter 13-11 to cut the Pella Christian lead to 31-27 at the break. The scoring remained tight out of the intermission, with each team scoring 17 points in the third quarter, giving the Eagles a 48-44 lead going into the final eight minutes of regulation. With the game coming down to the wire, Centerville scored six points in the final 30 seconds of the fourth quarter to tie the game at 62-62 and force overtime. After nearly two and a half scoreless minutes for both teams to open the extra period, Cooper Spronk got the scoring started for the Eagles with a layup, and PC held off the Big Reds the rest of the way to pick up the three point win and improve to 6-9 overall on the season. Gilbert Flagel led the way for Pella Christian in the victory by pouring in a game-high 26 points, while Deacon Branderhorst and Landon Fransman added 15 and 12 points respectively.

The Eagles boys basketball team has a quick turnaround, joining the girls squad for a Little Hawkeye Conference doubleheader tonight at Norwalk. Coverage of Pella Christian’s twin bill against the Warriors tonight can be heard live on 92.1 KRLS, beginning with pregame at 5:45 pm.