February 12, 2025

NV boys all smiles after Central Decatur win

Wolverines improve to 3-17 as season winds down

By Ryan Stonebraker
From left, Nodaway Valley boys basketball players Titus Hamer, Garrett Welsch, Ty Rardin, Titan Foster, Ben Hoover, Paul Berg and Parker Schneider smile for the cameras after defeating Central Decatur at home.

From left, Nodaway Valley boys basketball players Titus Hamer, Garrett Welsch, Ty Rardin, Titan Foster, Ben Hoover, Paul Berg and Parker Schneider smile for the cameras after defeating Central Decatur at home. (Dan Dickinson)

The hard work this season has paid off for Nodaway Valley’s boys basketball squad as the Wolverines have experienced a two-game win streak late in the regular season.

The Wolverines improved to 3-17 last week with back-to-back Pride of Iowa Conference victories, first over East Union Tuesday, Feb. 4 on the road, and at home Friday against Central Decatur.

NV beat East Union 54-52 and Central Decatur 62-57. This week’s slate included two non-conference home games — Tuesday against Cumberland-Anita-Massena (CAM) and Thursday against Interstate 35. Postseason brackets were released Monday and the Wolverines will host Diagonal 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 14.

Without senior forward Paul Berg in last week’s game against East Union, each team scored 15 points in the first quarter. An 11-3 spurt by the visitors in teh second quarter put NV up 26-18 on the Eagles at halftime. The Wolverines held a 42-35 advantage going to the fourth quarter and the teams were tied at 44 with five minutes remaining. NV hit free throws well enough in the closing minutes to be able to secure the win.

Ty Rardin led all scorers with 22 points. He was 5-of-8 shooting 3-pointers. Ben Hoover added a double double to the mix with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Jack Berg scored six points off the bench. Jase Pettit (18 points, 19 rebounds) and Pheolan Kelley (12 points, nine rebounds) were East Union’s two double-digit scorers.

On Friday, the Wolverines beat Central Decatur for the first time in three tries and just the first time since 2021.

“The kids played well Friday and were very excited to beat a good team like Central Decatur,” said Nodaway Valley head coach Mick Long. “They beat us by over 30 points before and we executed well. I am looking forward to this week. We have two non-conference games and then we found out we play at home Friday for the district game with Diagonal.”

The Cardinals led 16-15 after the opening quarter and 30-26 at halftime. They were up 47-42 after three quarters.

An instrumental 8-0 run for a 55-45 lead late helped the Wolverines get the win as the Cardinals cut the game to five at two diferent points in the last minute of the game.

Rardin was again NV’s leading scorer with 26 points, including five made 3-pointers, and Hoover added 12 points. Nash Dykes scored 18, Blake Boyd 16 and Asher Norman 12 as double-digit scorers for Central Decatur.

“We need time in the gym this week, and we get that with a couple of practices and a couple of games before Friday,” Long said. “We want to get some shots up and practice our free throws a lot here. It’s reaping the benefits of getting a couple of wins here, and it is another chance to show our improvement and get a win.”