Perhaps the top-ranked Johnston girls’ basketball team isn’t unbeatable after all.
No. 5 Ankeny Centennial led for much of the game on Friday before the visiting Dragons rallied for a 64-59 victory. It marked the first time this season that Johnston defeated its opponent by fewer than 10 points.
“I think we beat them every quarter but the third,” said Centennial coach Scott DeJong, whose team got a career-high 22 points from Mya Crawford. “But they’re really good and hard to stop.”
Aili Tanke scored 19 points as Johnston moved closer to the CIML Conference title. The Dragons can clinch at least a tie for the league crown with a win over No. 10 Waukee Northwest on Tuesday.
On the boys’ side, No. 3 Waukee is in a similar position after rallying from a 14-point deficit for a 70-56 win over No. 5 Centennial on Tuesday. The Warriors can clinch at least a tie for the conference title with a victory at Johnston on Friday, or if No. 4 Valley loses at No. 9 Ankeny on Tuesday.
It appears, though, that the best boys’ teams in Class 4A may reside outside the CIML. Waukee dropped a 68-53 decision to No. 10 Sioux City East on Saturday and is now 0-4 against non-CIML opponents.
No. 1 Cedar Rapids Kennedy, meanwhile, remained unbeaten with a 60-43 win over Valley. The Cougars (14-0) also own a double-digit victory over Waukee.
Here are the current CIML Conference standings:
GIRLS
Johnston 12-0 17-0
Waukee 10-3 13-3
Dowling Catholic 10-3 13-4
Ankeny Centennial 6-6 9-7
Ankeny 5-7 10-7
Valley 5-8 9-8
Southeast Polk 4-8 8-8
Waukee Northwest 4-8 8-8
Urbandale 0-13 3-14
Tuesday’s scores
Dowling Catholic 56, Ankeny 27
Johnston 59, Valley 22
Southeast Polk 71, Urbandale 45
Waukee 60, Ankeny Centennial 53
Thursday’s score
Dowling Catholic 62, Valley 30
Friday’s scores
Ankeny 50, Waukee Northwest 45
Dowling Catholic 75, Southeast Polk 37
Johnston 64, Ankeny Centennial 59
Waukee 72, Urbandale 45
Saturday’s scores
Urbandale 58, Des Moines Lincoln 16
Valley 61, Iowa City High 32
Waukee Northwest 76, Sioux City West 28
Monday’s games
Des Moines Lincoln at Southeast Polk
Dowling Catholic at Ankeny Centennial
Fort Dodge at Urbandale
Tuesday’s games
Cedar Rapids Prairie at Valley
Indianola at Waukee
Waukee Northwest at Johnston
Friday’s games
Ankeny Centennial at Ankeny
Southeast Polk at Valley
Waukee at Johnston
Waukee Northwest at Urbandale
Saturday’s game
Ames at Dowling Catholic
BOYS
Waukee 12-1 12-5
Valley 9-3 11-4
Ankeny Centennial 7-4 11-4
Ankeny 7-4 10-5
Dowling Catholic 6-7 7-8
Johnston 5-6 9-6
Waukee Northwest 5-7 10-7
Urbandale 2-11 5-11
Southeast Polk 1-11 5-11
Monday’s score
Southeast Polk 76, Des Moines Hoover 46
Tuesday’s scores
Ankeny 66, Dowling Catholic 60
Urbandale 79, Southeast Polk 66
Valley 58, Johnston 52
Waukee 70, Ankeny Centennial 56
Waukee Northwest 85, Grand View Christian 48
Thursday’s score
Valley 73, Dowling Catholic 65
Friday’s scores
Dowling Catholic 70, Southeast Polk 44
Waukee 84, Urbandale 62
Waukee Northwest 62, Ankeny 49
Saturday’s scores
Ankeny Centennial 78, Cedar Rapids Prairie 44
Cedar Rapids Kennedy 60, Valley 43
Johnston 55, Iowa City Liberty 42
Sioux City East 68, Waukee 53
Urbandale 66, Des Moines Lincoln 42
Waukee Northwest 70, Dallas Center-Grimes 60
Monday’s games
Des Moines Hoover at Dowling Catholic
Des Moines North at Ankeny Centennial
Fort Dodge at Urbandale
Tuesday’s games
Indianola at Waukee
Valley at Ankeny
Waukee Northwest at Johnston
Friday’s games
Ankeny Centennial at Ankeny
Southeast Polk at Valley
Waukee at Johnston
Waukee Northwest at Urbandale
Saturday’s game
Ames at Dowling Catholic