Lio Aguirre made five 3-point goals and scored 22 points, Carson Johnson added 17, and the eighth-ranked Ankeny boys’ basketball team pulled away in the second half for a 64-41 victory over No. 10 Ankeny Centennial in a Class 4A substate final on Tuesday at Southeast Polk.
The Hawks (17-6) advanced to the state tournament for the third time in five years. They will play Dubuque Senior in the Class 4A quarterfinals on March 6 at 12:15 p.m. at Wells Fargo Arena.
This was the first-ever postseason meeting between the crosstown rivals, who had split two games during the regular season. Ankeny’s current seven-game winning streak began with a 76-63 win over the Jaguars on Feb. 2.
Joey Oakie scored 12 points to lead Centennial (17-7), which shot just 34.6 percent from the field (18-of-52) and did not attempt a free throw until reserve Kael Jones went to the line in the final minute. The Jaguars also had 11 turnovers after committing a total of just nine in the previous two meetings.
Check back later today for much more on the game.
