The Ankeny Centennial girls’ basketball team has significantly closed the gap on the state’s top-ranked squad.
The No. 5 Jaguars battled visiting Johnston down to the wire on Friday before dropping a 64-59 decision. The Dragons had won the first meeting, 64-37, on Dec. 12.
“It was a great game,” said Centennial coach Scott DeJong. “Our team has really improved. I thought offensively we played well, and we competed hard on defense. We had a chance–we were down one and had the ball–but Johnston is hard to beat. They made a couple plays, and that was probably the difference.”
Johnston improved to 12-0 in the CIML Conference and 17-0 overall. The Jaguars’ records dropped to 6-6 and 9-7.
The Dragons are now 109-6 since the beginning of the 2019-20 season, but Centennial has made a habit of playing them close. The Jaguars lost to Johnston three times–including once in overtime–by a combined 20 points a year ago.
Friday’s game was another close battle.
“We rebounded very well and allowed them to get one shot along with staying steady on offense and executing our plays and just playing relaxed and not tentatively,” said Centennial forward Jaeden Pratt. “It was a good confidence-booster since no team has stayed within single digits of them, and it showed the fight that we had tonight. If we keep that going throughout the season, we have a chance to win more and more games.”
Centennial led by as many as 10 points in the first half. The Dragons pulled to within 31-26 at halftime.
“We weren’t going to let them smack us in the face, and we didn’t,” DeJong said. “We shot the ball better. We’ve got really good shooters because I see it every day in practice. Tillie (Smith) shot the ball well, and you start putting those in and everybody gets a little more relaxed.”
Johnston then outscored the Jaguars in the third quarter, 27-12, to build a 53-43 advantage. But Centennial battled back in the final period, closing the gap to 60-59 in the final minute.
Johnston’s Amani Jenkins scored off a rebound with 26 seconds left to give the Dragons a 62-59 lead. Centennial was unable to answer.
“There were a couple offensive rebounds,” DeJong said. “We gave up one on a free throw that they scored on. We did a really great job on the boards, but those were difference-makers.”
Mya Crawford scored a career-high 22 points to lead the Jaguars. She also grabbed six rebounds and dished out seven assists.
Crawford went 10-of-12 at the free-throw line.
“We had them in a lot of foul trouble. We went to the line 21 times,” DeJong said. “Mya was getting into the paint and scoring or getting fouled.”
Smith also set a career-high, pouring in 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting from 3-point range.
“Everybody knows she’s capable of that,” DeJong said.
Pratt had 11 points and four rebounds. Ava Martin added seven points and two steals.
Aili Tanke led Johnston with 19 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. Jenkins added 16 points, seven boards, three assists and three blocks.
The Dragons outrebounded Centennial by a 26-22 margin.
“We can take a lot away from this game,” DeJong said. “They’re one of the elite teams not only in Iowa but anywhere, and we played them toe-to-toe for 32 minutes. I think we can take a lot of confidence from this game. It shows what we’re capable of.
“We’ve had some ups and downs, but we’ve been pretty resilient and I think we’re seeing the benefits of that,” he added.
The Jaguars will host another conference game against No. 3 Dowling Catholic on Monday. The Maroons (10-3, 13-4) won the first meeting, 60-34, on Dec. 1.
It’s the fourth straight road game for Dowling, which defeated three league opponents last week by an average of 33 points.
“Dowling is playing great,” DeJong said. “They’re as good as anybody, and we just have to keep moving forward.”
