The Newton boys and girls basketball teams began 2026 with road wins Friday at Des Moines Hoover in games heard live on 92.1 KRLS and the KRLS3 stream. 

The Cardinal boys achieved a double-digit lead at halftime, 41-31, and pulled away from there for an 85-65 win. Isaiah Slaughter scored 30 points for Newton and Brody Wobschall came off the bench and contributed 20 points as the Newton boys picked up their third win against four losses. Cardinal head coach Jason Carter says a switch to a zone defense in the second quarter helped slow down the Huskies scoring, while his players shot and shared the ball well.

“That’s one thing we stress with these guys. When we are sharing the ball and moving it, we are going to put more points on the board. I thought we did a really nice job of that.”

Newton girls head coach Jake Bennett said improved ball movement was a big key in his team’s 58-39 win. 

“We talked a lot over Christmas break about how we could be a better team by moving the ball on offense. Get it to different people, get multiple passes, rotate the ball from side to side on the floor. And this was a really good game for us to execute and see those things translate to the floor.”

The Cardinals had a five-point lead after the first quarter and took a 28-17 lead at halftime. Tori White had 17 points and Addyson Cibula added 15 points for Newton as the team evened their record to four and four. 

The Cardinal boys and girls return to Little Hawkeye Conference action Tuesday at Pella Christian.