The Washington Demon boys will play for a spot in the Substate championship tonight, heading to Pella to face off against the Dutch in a match-up you can hear on KCII.

Washington is coming off a dramatic 53-50 win over Burlington on Monday, and will look to take the momentum from that game into what should be one of the stiffest tests for the Demons this season. Washington is 13-10 on the year, and will come in as the underdogs in tonight’s road match-up.

Pella is 19-4 this season, and finished as the runners-up in the Little Hawkeye Conference this season. The Dutch are primarily led scoring-wise by two seniors. Jack McGuire, a 6’5″ forward, gives Pella an inside presence, and is averaging 17.3 points per game this season on nearly 64% shooting. Austin Schulte, a 6’3″ guard, is the team’s primary outside threat, averaging 16.9 points a game this season. The Dutch average 67 points per game, while allowing only 54.

Washington head coach Collin Stark spoke with KCII about Pella following the win over Burlington on Monday. He says earning a win on Thursday first starts with his own squad showing up to play. “You know, we just continue to talk about this postseason is all about giving yourself an opportunity, and just go out and compete and see where that gets us. It’s not quite to March Madness, but now that we’ve gotten this win, let’s see if we can create some madness.”

Pella leads the series against Washington in the Bound era, taking 8 out of 10 games since 2009. The last meeting between the two squads was in 2023, where the Dutch dominated the Demons for a 90-36 victory. Tonight’s winner advances to face the winner of Keokuk and Centerpoint-Urbana for the Substate championship.