Newton boys make key free throws late, grind out win over Oskaloosa

Newton boys’ basketball coach Jason Carter went with a starting lineup full of seniors on Senior Night during the Cardinals’ Little Hawkeye Conference matchup with Oskaloosa on Monday night.

The lineup change put Newton out of rhythm offensively, but the Cardinals were able to slow down the Indians enough to grind out a 35-30 win at home.

Newton won the game despite shooting 29 percent from the floor and committing 20 turnovers. And a big reason why was because the Cardinals were clutch at the free-throw line when the game mattered most.

“I thought the kids really grinded. We couldn’t get anything to go in the basket,” Carter said. “We missed a few bunnies early and that set the tone for the entire game.

“We found a way to win the game. I would rather have an ugly win than a pretty loss any day.”

Senior Parker Aalbers has not played in every game this season. And he was making his first start of the season Monday. But Carter went to Aalbers in the fourth quarter and he buried 3-of-4 from the foul line. The final two makes came with 1:17 to play and it gave Newton the lead for good.

“I knew we needed to knock them down. We need every point, and I was able to come up clutch for the team,” Aalbers said. “It wasn’t the best game for us, but it was a win we really needed.”

The Cardinals (6-7 overall, 4-6 in the conference) hit 10-of-13 from the line in the game and were 8-of-10 in the fourth.

Brody Bauer hit a pair with 58.7 seconds left to put his team up 32-28. Keith Moko made one that made it 33-30 and Zay Arguello was 2-for-2 from the charity stripe to seal the win with 9 seconds on the clock.

Bauer scored eight of Newton’s 11 points in the first half. He added a bucket in the third as Newton rallied from a 19-15 deficit to force a 21-all tie after three quarters.

In the fourth, Bauer banged in back-to-back triples to give Newton a 27-25 lead. Oskaloosa (1-14, 0-10) answered with a 3 of its own and that’s when Aalbers made 3-of-4 free throws on Newton’s next two possessions.

“We have been riding six or seven players lately, but I needed someone to give us some energy,” Carter said. “Parker can absolutely give that to us. For those bench guys, when I put them in, they have to give me a reason to not take them out. He took advantage of his minutes, and that’s why he stayed out there until the end.”

After Aalbers made his final free throws, the Cardinals went to a full-court press that yielded back-to-back Oskaloosa turnovers. Bauer then made his two free throws to push the lead to four.

“Free throws down the stretch are probably one of the most important things,” Bauer said. “In a game like that, making free throws is what won the game. And different guys stepped up and hit them, too, which was good for us.”

The Cardinals trailed 10-1 in the first quarter. A Bauer 3-pointer with 2:10 left in the period was Newton’s first field goal of the game. Moko added a putback to close the gap to 12-6 after one.

Newton outscored the Indians 5-0 in the second. Bauer made a layup and converted a 3-point play.

He finished with a game-high 18 points and grabbed four rebounds. He made all three of the Cardinals’ treys as they were 3-of-13 from deep.

“They gave me too much space, so I pulled the trigger and hit one and then the next one felt good, too,” Bauer said. “Being down the whole game and continuing to fight and grind out a win was big for us.”

In the first meeting against Oskaloosa, Newton won 58-36 and shot 48 percent from the floor. It made six treys. The latest game between the two LHC rivals saw Newton shoot 29 percent from the floor.

“Luckily, Brody woke up and hit some really big shots,” Carter said. “Down the stretch, we made our free throws. Those were big-time free throws after we got the lead.”

Moko finished with five points and four rebounds, Arguello chipped in three points and six boards and Logan Schilling put in four points.

Newton’s leading scorer, Adam Mattes, missed time in the first half because of foul trouble. He finished with three assists. Jake Ingle swiped three steals and Treycen Garton grabbed three boards.

Notes: Three players were recognized before the game for Senior Night, including Schilling, Aalbers and Trent Hamand. All three started the game with Mattes and Bauer. … The Cardinals didn’t take their first lead until Moko scored inside with 6:50 to play in the third. It was 13-12 at that point. Newton’s biggest lead was the five points it won by. …  Newton plays four games this week and Carter said all four teams are different. “We have to be mature enough to execute a game plan for very different teams this week,” Carter said. “We have to alter how we play to give ourselves the best chance to win.” … Oskaloosa has lost 14 straight games.