PELLA, Iowa – The Coe College men's basketball team won 86-76 over Central on Saturday evening for its third A-R-C victory of the year. Coe outscored Central 50-39 in the first half to take control of the contest en route to the win. The Kohawks improve to 8-5 overall and 3-1 in the A-R-C while Central falls to 4-8 overall and 1-2 in the league.  Five Kohawks eclipsed double figures in the game, as Jacob Robertson scored 17 to pace the team. Jarad Kruse, Tommy Hook, Josh Schmitt, and Austin Roth all scored ten-plus points for Coe, which shot 51.7 percent from the floor. 
 
The squads traded buckets in the early going of the first half, as Coe held a 9-8 lead after nearly four minutes of game action. The Kohawks then ripped off 11 straight points, grabbing their largest lead of the game at 20-8 with 11:45 left in the first. The Dutch ended the run with back-to-back baskets to cut the lead to 8 but Coe responded right back, scoring seven consecutive points to push the lead back to 15 points with just over nine minutes left in the half. 
 
Central hung tough, despite its largest deficit of the game, getting to within four points of the lead with less than three minutes to play in the opening frame. The Kohawks then ended the quarter on a 10-3 spurt, regaining a double-digit lead prior to the halftime break. 
 
Coe maintained a double-digit lead for nearly the entire the second quarter, as Central did not get within seven points until there was just 53 seconds left in the game. The Kohawks pushed their lead to as many as 21 points in the half behind solid shooting and tough defense but the Dutch continued to scrap down the stretch hitting a 3 to cut the score to 83-76 with just under a minute to play. Following a Coe timeout, Hook was fouled and he hit two free throws to ice the contest for the Kohawks.
 
Up next: Coe will be back in action on January 8 in an A-R-C matchup with the University of Dubuque at 7:30 p.m. 
 
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