Basketball Game Preview: Newton Cardinals vs. Van Meter Bulldogs

The Newton Cardinals will take on the Van Meter Bulldogs at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. Both teams took a loss in their last game, so they'll have plenty of motivation to get the 'W'.

Last Tuesday, Newton ended up a good deal behind Norwalk and lost 56-41. The Cardinals have struggled against the Warriors recently, as the game was their seventh consecutive lost matchup.

Meanwhile, Van Meter came up short against Roland-Story on Monday and fell 72-64. The loss was a bit of a surprise, as the Bulldogs came into the match with a sizable advantage in MaxPreps' Iowa basketball rankings (they are ranked 94th, while the Norsemen are ranked 232nd).

Van Meter's defeat dropped their record down to 13-7. As for Newton, their loss dropped their record down to 9-9.

Newton beat Van Meter 54-44 in their previous meeting back in February of 2024. Will Newton repeat their success, or does Van Meter have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.