PELLA — Toughness, grit and a will to win.

The Central men's basketball team used a 15-2 second-half surge to knock off  No. 13-ranked Washington-St. Louis University (Mo.) 84-80 Saturday.
    
The Dutch (7-1) trailed by as many as nine points in the first half and were down 54-49 with 14:45 left before rallying. Senior guard Pete Walker (Red Oak) helped spark the comeback and put up a game-high 20 points with seven rebounds. Senior forward Colby Taylor (Creston) added 17 points and 10 rebounds, his sixth statistical double-double this season.
    
The stage was set with alumni in attendance at P.H. Kuyper Gym on a day the 1957-58 and 1970-71 Iowa Conference championship teams were recognized. With upwards of 50 former Dutch players in attendance, Central sent them home proud.
    
The teams traded baskets until Washington-St. Louis (6-2) took a 16-7 advantage six minutes into the game. The Dutch came back and took the lead 20-19 at the 9:56 mark, however the Bears responded with a 20-11 run over the next seven minutes. Central answered with a 10-2 run of its own, capped off with a 3-pointer just before the half from junior guard Trashawn Boyd (Normal, Ill., University HS).
    
"We had a little run before half where we made shots and got stops when we needed to," said coach Craig Douma. "Anytime you get a shot at the end of a half to tie the game it gives you momentum for the second half."
    
The second half was much like the first half, a battle. But Central's 15-2 spree produced a 71-58 lead with 7:44 remaining. Washington-St. Louis roared back with a 19-6 run to tie the game at 77 with 1:04 left in the game. Central called upon Walker down the stretch as the senior beat his defender off the dribble for a tough go-ahead basket. Walker scored five of the team's last seven points.
   
"Pete's layup to put us up two, was all extra effort and toughness," said Douma. "It was the play of the game for us."
 
"Our senior leadership has been outstanding this year and tonight was no different," said Douma.
     
Boyd finished the game with 16 points and two rebounds, junior forward Kyle Smith (Ionia, New Hampton HS) had 12 points and senior forward Austin Glawe (Aurelia, Sioux Central HS) added 10 points and eight rebounds.
    
The Central bench outscored the Bears bench 28-13.
    
"Our bench was huge for us again tonight," said Douma. "It really is a credit to our guys for how they played tonight."
    
Coming into the game, the Bears had outrebounded opponents by an average of 12 rebounds a game. Saturday, the Dutch won the rebound battle 45-33.
    
"Rebounding was crucial," said Douma. "Controlling the glass was a focal point for us coming into the game."
    
It's Central's first-ever victory over Washington-St. Louis in five meetings, the last in 1985-86. And it's the second time in three years that the Dutch have upset a nationally ranked squad in December. Central surprised No. 1-rated Augustana College (Ill.), 89-78, Dec. 3, 2014. Those two clubs meet again Friday at 7 p.m. in Rock Island, Ill. The Vikings (6-2) are perennial NCAA tourney contenders.