The sixth-ranked Ankeny boys’ basketball team has been awarded the No. 1 seed in Class 4A Substate 1 by the Iowa High School Athletic Association, while No. 10 Ankeny Centennial is the No. 2 seed in Substate 2. Both teams will receive a first-round bye before hosting a semifinal game on Friday, Feb. 25 at 7 p.m.
Ankeny (14-4) will host the winner of a quarterfinal game between Sioux City North (2-18) and Sioux City West (6-12). Sioux City East (14-4) will host Council Bluffs Jefferson (1-18) or Waukee (10-8) in the other semifinal game.
Centennial (10-7) will host the winner of a quarterfinal game between Des Moines Hoover (12-6) and Fort Dodge (1-15). No. 1 Ames (16-1) will host Des Moines Lincoln (10-7) or Mason City (3-14) in the other semifinal game.
The substate finals will be played on Tuesday, March 1 at sites to be determined. The Hawks could meet Sioux City East in the substate final for the second time in three years. In 2020, Ankeny rallied for a 73-67 victory over the Black Raiders and went on to capture the state title.
Centennial will likely face a rematch against Des Moines Hoover in the semifinal round. The Jaguars posted a 50-41 victory over Hoover on Jan. 18, but the Huskies played that game without leading scorer Chase Henderson, who averages 24.3 points. On Tuesday, Hoover scored a basket at the buzzer to beat Ankeny, 53-51, in overtime.
If Centennial can advance to the substate final, the Jaguars would likely meet Ames for the third time. The Little Cyclones won the first two meetings, 58-38 and 44-37, and they also posted a 57-37 win over Centennial in last year’s substate final at Des Moines East.