The last time the Ankeny Centennial girls’ basketball team played CIML Conference rival Valley, the Jaguars simply couldn’t find the bottom of the net.
Tuesday’s rematch at Valley was a different story.
Fifth-ranked Centennial pulled away in the second half for a 40-30 victory over the No. 9 Tigers. The win avenged last month’s 35-24 loss, when the Jaguars were held to the fewest points in program history.
“This certainly beats the last time,” said Centennial coach Scott DeJong. “We’ve been playing better, and I hoped it would show tonight. But with the long layoff (due to bad weather), you don’t know.”
Centennial was playing for the first time since Jan. 5. The Jaguars improved to 5-4 in the conference and 8-5 overall, while Valley’s records dropped to 4-6 and 7-6.
“It feels like we haven’t played since Christmas break,” said Centennial point guard Mya Crawford. “It felt like that all over again, but it is what it is. We’ll deal with the weather.”
Crawford scored 16 points and Jaeden Pratt added 13 as Centennial extended its winning streak to five games. The two juniors combined for all 18 of the Jaguars’ points in the first half.
“Mya was really able to get to the rim, and Jaeden was able to get (Ashlee Brown) into some foul trouble and she just kept going at her inside,” DeJong said. “That was a good 1-2 combination for us.”
Centennial closed out the first half with a 7-0 run to take an 18-15 lead into the break. The Jaguars then outscored Valley in the third quarter, 15-4, to build a 33-19 advantage.
Pratt and Crawford each had four points in the period before Tillie Smith connected on a 3-point goal to end the quarter.
“I think we used that (earlier loss) as revenge or motivation,” said Crawford, who also grabbed 11 rebounds. “We knew that wasn’t acceptable and we saw the turnout last time, so we kind of came out using that in the back of our minds.”
Valley pulled within 33-23 in the fourth quarter before Crawford made a 3-pointer with 4 minutes 25 seconds left to halt the Tigers’ rally. The Jaguars then relied on their defense to close out a third consecutive road win.
“Our defense was really good,” DeJong said. “But we can play better, and that’s the good news.”
Brown led Valley with 11 points, while Elise Jaeger chipped in eight. The slumping Tigers have lost five straight games after a 7-1 start.
Pratt finished with nine rebounds, three steals and a block. Ava Martin contributed six points, and Smith dished out three assists.
“We practiced enough (over the last 10 days),” DeJong said. “We didn’t have any games last week, but now we’ve got them coming hopefully.”
The Jaguars will host a conference game against Urbandale (2-10) on Thursday. They won the first meeting at Urbandale, 75-33, on Nov. 28.
