The Ankeny Centennial boys’ basketball team took a huge step forward on Friday night.
It still wasn’t enough, though, to end the Jaguars’ recent losing streak to crosstown rival Ankeny.
The Hawks opened the second half with an 11-0 run to take the lead for good and went on to post a 58-46 win at Centennial. It was their fifth straight triumph in the series–all of them by double digits.
“It’s awesome,” said senior guard Samuel Cowart, who scored a career-high 12 points in the victory. “We prepared for it all week. We’ve been locked in; we haven’t been taking them lightly. It was a good, gritty win.”
While the Hawks improved to 2-0 in the CIML Conference, Centennial’s league record dropped to 0-2 under first-year coach Matt Delger. The Jaguars were coming off a 64-21 loss at Waukee Northwest on Tuesday, when they were held to the fewest points in program history.
“I really like how our guys came out and fought,” said Delger. “I feel like we’re darn close. If we fight like that every night, we’re going to keep improving and we’ll give ourselves some chances to win, that’s for sure.”
Ankeny got off to a fast start behind 7-foot-1 center Max Allison, who followed a 3-point goal by Jasani Campbell with back-to-back dunks to give the Hawks an early 8-0 lead. Allison had another dunk in the second quarter and finished with seven points, all of them in the first half.
“Max is just trying to get his feet wet, but the guys are believing in each other,” said Ankeny coach Brandt Carlson.
Centennial responded with a 10-2 run of its own, tying the game at 10-10 on a pair of 3-pointers by Luke Mitchell. Mitchell scored all eight of his points in the first half, including a rebound basket with 40 seconds left to give the Jaguars a 27-26 halftime lead, and finished with a team-high six rebounds.
“I feel like as a group we’re a lot more connected than we were last year,” said sophomore Keaton Kasperbauer, who also had eight points and added four steals for Centennial. “I think we fight when we get down, and that’s one thing I really like about our guys. We don’t get down on each other. We stay positive.”
Ankeny took control of the game with its run to open the third quarter. Rio Aguirre ignited the flurry with an and-one, Campbell made a 3-pointer, and Drew Sorensen followed with five straight points to give the Hawks a 37-27 advantage.
“Fortunately, the third quarter I thought we stepped it up a little bit,” Carlson said. “I thought we played with just a little more effort. We had the same situation last year over here where we had a big third quarter. I’m just glad it worked out.”
Centennial pulled within 37-32 following five consecutive points by Hunter Runchey and later closed the gap to 38-35 on a trey by Drew Hansen with 2:57 left in the third quarter, but the Jaguars could not get any closer.
“We’ve got a group that has bought into playing selfless basketball,” Delger said. “They’re playing for each other. You keep doing that, and good things will happen.”
Cowart made a 3-pointer to extend Ankeny’s lead to 45-37 late in the period. He connected for his fourth trey early in the fourth quarter to increase the margin to 52-39.
“It starts with them believing in me first of all,” Cowart said of his teammates. “We have a bunch of good players on the court. So for them to pass the ball to me to shoot it, it all starts with us believing in each other. We’re all not just teammates, we’re friends.”
Cowart played in just seven games as a junior, scoring a total of 17 points. He saw some action off the bench in Tuesday’s season opener against Valley, but did not attempt a shot.
“I’m really happy for Sam,” Carlson said. “It’s been a long road for him as far as getting onto the court and working his way through the roster. I think it’s a tribute to his willingness to stick it out. I’m happy for him; those were some big shots.”
Aguirre and Campbell each scored 13 points to lead Ankeny. Sorensen added seven, all of them in the third quarter.
“We knew they’d be good,” Delger said of the Hawks. “We had film on them, and Allison had a huge impact in the last game against Valley. We were ready for them, but they’re a good team.”
Runchey led the Jaguars with 14 points, while Hansen chipped in 12. It was a career-high for both players.
“All the credit to Centennial–they played hard,” Carlson said. “Their offense was really difficult to stop, their guys were patient and well coached, and just tough. Hat’s off to them. That was a hard first half for us. I thought our guys were back on their heels a little bit.”
Kasperbauer said his team is heading in the right direction.
“Just from our practices, and even outside of basketball we’re all close,” he said. “We all talk, we all know each other, and I think that helps us when we get out on the court. We trust each other to make shots.”
Both teams will be back in action on Tuesday against conference opponents. The Hawks will play at Johnston (1-1), while Centennial will host Dowling Catholic (2-0).
“We went 2-0 this week, and next week is a big week, too,” Carlson said. “Things will just keep getting harder.”
