State-ranked Pella eliminates Newton boys in substate semifinals

PELLA — The Newton boys basketball team couldn’t have started the second half against Class 3A No. 9 Pella any better.

Trailing by just two at halftime, the Cardinals executed a set play to perfection to even the score at 20-all.

But the Dutch answered the Caden Klein layup with a 9-0 run and host Pella kept that cushion the rest of the way during a 53-37 victory in 3A Substate 7 semifinal action on Thursday.

“We executed a set play perfectly,” Newton head boys basketball coach Jason Carter said. “But then they went on a big run, (Austin) Schulte got real hot and we couldn’t seem to get a stop when we needed it.”

The Dutch outscored the Cardinals 16-6 in the third quarter and extended the margin by four in the fourth to advance to the substate final.

Pella (18-6) gets No. 7 ADM in the substate championship game at 7 p.m. on Monday in Adel. The Cardinals retired at 12-11.

Newton and Pella went back-and-forth in the first. Back-to-back buckets by Klein and Landon Bozarth put the Cardinals in front 4-2 and they led 6-4 after Klein banked in a fadeaway jumper.

The Dutch got the next four to go up 8-6, but Grant Osby’s three-point play and another Klein layup shifted the advantage back to Newton.

Pella got the final two buckets of the first and then scored the first six of the second to swell its lead to 18-11. Klein’s five points in the frame and Isaiah Slaughter’s two free throws kept the Cardinals close at halftime.

“I thought we could have put a little more pressure on them in the second quarter,” Carter said. “We left two layups off the board. I felt like we could have had the lead at halftime.”

Klein continued his strong night when he scored on a back cut to open the third. But Austin Schulte was just too good in the second half.

Schulte scored 12 of his 18 points in the final two frames and posted nine of those in the third to push Pella’s advantage to 36-24 after three.

Osby scored nine of his career-high 12 points in the second half and five of those came in the first three minutes of the fourth.

The sophomore big man scored inside off a nice pass from Klein and then made 3-of-6 from the free-throw line to get Newton within 11 with 5:09 to play.

But the Cardinals just didn’t score enough in the second half to narrow the gap any closer.

Klein led the Cardinals with 14 points, two rebounds and three assists. He scored 11 of the 14 points in the first half and most of his points came off attacking drives to the basket.

“I challenged him to be more aggressive,” Carter said. “And I thought he did a great job of attacking the hoop. Coming off making 16 3-pointers, we knew they were going to guard us on the perimeter. That opened up some driving lanes, and he did a great job of getting downhill and either finishing or finding some dump offs.

“(Osby) found the right spot for those dump offs. He has a knack for doing that. He was ready to catch it and ready to score.”

Cade Bauer finished with three points and four rebounds, Bozarth had three rebounds and three assists and Tyler Thompson grabbed three boards off the bench.

Osby’s 12 points and two rebounds came in his second career start. Isaiah Slaughter swiped two steals off the bench and Braydon West drained a 3 late in the fourth.

Newton loses six seniors to graduation. That group includes Bozarth, Bauer, Thompson, West, Creighton Andrew and Christian Ergenbright.

It was a tough night offensively for the three starters as Bozarth, Bauer and Andrew combined for only two points until the final few minutes of the game.

“That stinks for them to go out that way, but they should hold their heads high,” Carter said. “They had a heck of a season with a lot of really good wins. I’m proud of their efforts. I can never question their effort. They fought their tails off. Unfortunately, the shots just didn’t go down for them tonight.

“I’m incredibly grateful for the six seniors we had. It’s a great group of kids. They did everything we asked them to do. They exceeded a lot of preseason expectations. I think the most games anyone predicted us to win was nine.”

The Cardinals shot 35 percent from the floor, made 2-of-15 from 3 and connected on 9-of-18 from the foul line. They turned the ball over only 12 times but got out-rebounded 37-20.

Pella won the game despite making only 2-of-11 from 3 and 5-of-13 from the foul line. The Dutch shot 48 percent from the floor, grabbed 11 offensive rebounds and scored 42 points in the paint.

All 20 of their points in the first half came within a few feet of the hoop.

“They scored way too many in the paint,” Carter said. “Part of it is they’re incredibly athletic. Their size and physicality over time kind of wore us down. I thought we did a pretty good job of contesting, but I also thought there were times and places where we could have used some fouls to make them earn it at the line.”

Jack McGuire scored 11 of his 19 points in the fourth and grabbed seven rebounds, while Schulte had 18 points and went 2-of-3 from 3 to lead the Dutch, who have registered five straight wins over the Cardinals. David Garner grabbed seven rebounds and Tyson Barnes pulled down six boards.

Notes: While the Cardinals graduate six seniors, they also bring back four players who saw significant minutes in varsity games this season. “We have a lot of younger guys playing this year, which we haven’t always had,” Carter said. “They have to continue to get in the weight room and learn that it’s a physical game. Everyone is good at this level in this round. These experiences for them will be huge. They won’t have those postseason butterflies next year.” … Newton posted its fourth straight double-digit win season. The Cardinals (12-11) had a winning record for the third time in four seasons.