MOUNT VERNON—Center Joshua Van Gorp (junior, Pella, Pella Christian HS) notched his fifth career statistical double-double as the Central College men's basketball team streaked to its fifth consecutive win, 70-58 at Cornell College Saturday.
           
It's thelongest win streak since 2015 for the Dutch (8-3), who were up 38-25 at intermission. They led by as many as 22 points and the final margin was the closest of the second half.
           
Van Gorp pumped in 26 points on 12-of-16 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds for his second double-double of the season.                                                                                                
           
"Cornell's got a pretty good big guy so I wasn't sure how easy it would be for Josh to score in there, but he did a great job of getting to his moves and getting a good seal and the guys did a great job again of finding him," coach Joe Steinkamp said. "He played a really good game on both ends of the floor. He had to guard a smaller guy on the perimeter and he did a good job of chasing him off the 3-point line."
           
Guard Kade Terrell (5th-year, Montrose, Colo.) added 11 points while guard Drew Edwards (senior, Eden Prairie, Minn.) had seven assists and forward Kole Tupa (junior, Center Point, Center Point-Urbana HS) had six assists. The Dutch passed out 21 assists on their 27 baskets.
          
 "We're getting great ball movement," Steinkamp said. "The guys are really learning how to play off each other. I thought Drew (Edwards) controlled the tempo with his passing and had a great all-around game."
           
Steinkamp also liked the boost Central got off the bench from guard Jalen Wilmington (senior, Chicago, Ill., Crete Monee HS), particularly in the first half when Terrell got in some foul trouble. He had nine points, two steals and a block in 16 minutes of action.
           
"He hit a couple threes and scored in transition," Steinkamp said. "The kid has worked so hard and kept himself ready. He really gave us a lift."
           
The Dutch outshot Cornell (3-9) 46.7% to 44.4% and held a 39-33 advantage on the glass.
           
Central takes a break for Christmas before resuming American Rivers play Jan. 4 with a women's-men's doubleheader at Waverly against Wartburg College. The men's contest tips off at 7:30 p.m. Wartburg is 3-6 overall and 1-2 in conference play. The Knights play three non-conference games, including a contest with Cornell Dec. 31, before meeting Central.
           
The Dutch will have to wait to try extending their streak.
           
"We want to keep playing right now but the break gives us an opportunity to get healthy, get some rest and spend some time with family," Steinkamp said. "But it's been a fun first semester and we just want to continue to get better and keep it going."