Pella’s basketball teams closed 2020 with a bang with a pair of running clock victories on the road at Newton in a doubleheader heard live on KRLS2.  The girls started the night with a 62-24 win, while the boys closed it out with a 73-35 victory.

It was a bit of a sluggish start for the Lady Dutch, who missed several close range shots in the first half, but still managed to take a 21-10 lead into intermission.  Coach Jerod Garland’s club caught fire in the third quarter, out-scoring the Cardinals 20-6 in the frame to pull away.  He says that after struggling through the first 16 minutes, they figured it out in the second half.

“It was hard to be unhappy because we were getting some really good shots.  Four of our first five shots were from inside, but they just weren’t falling.  There’s really nothing you can say except ‘settle down and it will come’.  As the game went on, we got a little better and a little more confident.  There were a lot of assists in the second half, and it was fun to see the ball moving and players smiling and pointing at each other after assists.  That’s the way we like to play.”

Madison Naig led Pella with 19 points and Anna Vander Waal chipped in 13, including two big three-pointers early in the third quarter.  Reagan Van Wyk dominated the boards, grabbing 11 rebounds for the Lady Dutch.  Pella improves to 4-3 on the season and 2-1 in the Little Hawkeye Conference.

In the boys game, Pella nailed nine first half three-pointers in building a 43-16 lead.  Running clock was on by the middle of the third quarter and everyone on the roster saw the floor.  Grant Nelson led the way with 22 points, including 20 in the first half, and Karl Miller added 19.  The Little Dutch are 6-0, 3-0 in league play.

Tuesday’s games at Knoxville have been cancelled, and the Dutch are searching for a replacement, but as it stands now, both teams are done for 2020 and will resume their schedule on January 5th at Oskaloosa.