After getting off to an impressive 3-0 start, the Ankeny boys’ basketball team has suffered back-to-back losses on its home court.
Friday’s 66-59 loss to an unbeaten Waukee squad was disappointing, but hardly a cause for concern. Tuesday’s 61-46 defeat at the hands of Southeast Polk was more puzzling.
“It was one of those situations,” said Ankeny coach Brandt Carlson. “They played really well and deserved to win, and we certainly deserved to lose. I’ve always taken credit for every loss around here. There was a lot of learning going on tonight from a lot of different aspects, and we’ll work hard to figure it out. It was not fun to go through, but sometimes it’s necessary in sports to go through those things.
“I’m sure we’ll improve from it,” he added.
Carlson said the game reminded him of last January’s contest between the two teams, when the Rams came into Ankeny without a conference win and rolled to a 74-36 victory. They raced out to a 45-18 halftime lead in that game, and on Tuesday they built a 12-point advantage at the break.
“I did have (some flashbacks),” Carlson said. “Sadly enough.”
Jasani Campbell scored 16 of his team-high 18 points in the first half to keep Ankeny within striking distance. The Hawks then opened the third quarter with a 12-4 run and pulled to within 34-30 on a layup by Drew Sorensen with 5 minutes 34 seconds left in the period.
“We made a nice little run, and I thought we had some things turned around,” Carlson said. “And then they hit two or three 3s again and go up double digits, and now you’re playing from behind.”
Emmanuel Tete hit a 3-pointer to halt Ankeny’s rally. Grady Braunschweig-Norris followed with a pair of treys, then converted a steal into a layup before Joshua Charlotin added another 3-pointer to complete a 14-4 run, giving Southeast Polk a 48-34 lead.
The Hawks could get no closer than 10 points the rest of the way.
“Every night is a new night,” said Carlson, whose team posted a 63-58 win at Johnston on Dec. 9 a week after the Rams suffered a 60-50 loss on the same court. “You just have to continue to get better.”
Charlotin, a 6-foot-4 sophomore, poured in a game-high 26 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as Southeast Polk improved to 2-2 in the CIML Conference and 4-2 overall. Ankeny, meanwhile, dropped to 3-2 in the league.
Charlotin punctuated the Rams’ win with a pair of dunks midway through the fourth quarter.
“He played really well,” Carlson said. “He took advantage of Max (Allison) a little bit on the perimeter, and anybody else that guarded him he was at the rim and had dunks. He played so hard–(even) with four fouls. What a dominant performance by him. He’s a new player, but they also got good production from their point guard. (Tete)’s a tough dude, and (Braunschweig-Norris) as well is a tough guard who played for them last year. They have a lot of confidence, and they’ve played every team competitively. They’re going to be a factor in our league and in the postseason as well.”
Tete finished with 20 points, while Braunschweig-Norris chipped in 10. Henry Gaffney added 10 boards and four assists.
Rio Aguirre scored 15 points for Ankeny, all in the second half. He had 13 of them in the third quarter.
“You can’t just rely on one or two guys,” Carlson said. “We’ve got to build our whole group.”
It didn’t help when the Hawks lost senior guard Samuel Cowart to a leg injury late in the first quarter. He was helped off the court and did not return.
Ankeny trailed by 18-10 at the time. After Campbell closed out the period with a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to five, Southeast Polk outscored the Hawks in the second quarter, 12-5, to extend the margin to 30-18.
“I think defensively for them they did a great job of taking some things away,” Carlson said. “We just kind of gave up on some things early.”
Ankeny will travel to Cedar Falls on Friday for a non-conference game against the Tigers, who are now 4-0 on the season after cruising to a 79-43 win at Cedar Rapids Kennedy on Tuesday.
“It’s frustrating (to lose) obviously, but at the same time it’s only December and hopefully we’ll right the ship a little bit and go up to Cedar Falls and compete and then go into Christmas break and continue to move forward,” Carlson said.
