(Story by Stephen McDaniel)
The Ankeny boys’ basketball team didn’t waste much time putting Friday’s game to bed early.
Riding the wave of momentum from their rivalry win over Ankeny Centennial, the Hawks exploded out of the gate in West Des Moines and used a 26-7 first-quarter run to pave the way for their 72-54 road victory over Valley.
“This was a big week,” said Ankeny coach Brandt Carlson. “We needed these two (games). Next week, I hope that builds some momentum for us and we can keep on moving with our goal to be a factor in March.”
Friday’s rematch went much differently than the first meeting between the two teams during the season opener on Dec. 2. In that game, the Tigers held a 33-26 lead in the third quarter before Ankeny rallied for a 58-52 win on its home court.
Valley never held the lead on Friday, and the Tigers were already down by nearly 20 points after the opening period.
“Having a pulse on defense and just understanding the moment and how important these games are,” Carlson said of the team’s successes defensively. “Understanding the record of teams does not matter. What matters is the players and the coaches you’re going against.”
Junior guard Jasani Campbell and senior guard Rio Aguirre set the tone right away by hitting back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Hawks an early 6-0 lead.
Valley’s Jack Tracy managed to answer with a triple of his own, but the 6-3 deficit was the closest that the Tigers would get the rest of the way.
Campbell made another shot from beyond the arc and got a third bucket for an 11-3 Ankeny lead that forced Valley to call a timeout. Shortly thereafter, Max Allison scored on a putback, Andrew Brandhorst added a pair of baskets, and Aguirre knocked down a second trey.
The rout was on–and a lot of players contributed for the Hawks.
“I thought Keyon Ford had some big plays,” Carlson said. “Max played really well today and got some stats offensively, which is great for him. I’m really proud of the guys and hopefully we keep building.”
Campbell and Kael Roush both made shots from beyond the arc to close out the quarter with Ankeny’s fifth and sixth 3-pointers and a 26-7 advantage.
The Hawks had eight different players score in the first half while building a 22-point margin.
“(Spreading the ball out) is what I love about the Ankeny kids,” Carlson said. “They want to share (the ball), they’re not about themselves, they’re about our team and our program.
“Kael hit a big 3, Carson (Bright) hit a big 3, Andrew got some stats offensively just by being free in the zone and same with Landon Hutchins. It’s just great to see a bunch of guys have success with their teammates being a big part of it,” he added.
Ankeny cooled off a bit to open the second half as the Tigers attempted to come back. But Campbell scored six of his game-high 19 points and Aguirre had four of his 16 in the fourth quarter to help close things out.
“Jasani is really coming into his own,” Carlson said. “He’s a really good player, he’s finding his confidence at a big-time rate, and that helps out Rio and helps everyone really settle into the game.”
The win was Ankeny’s second in a row after a difficult 1-5 stretch. The Hawks are now 5-4 in the CIML Conference and 6-5 overall.
Tyree Williams Jr. had 16 points to lead Valley. The Tigers’ records dropped to 0-10 and 0-11.
Ankeny will travel to Waukee on Tuesday for another conference game against the No. 4 Warriors, who have not played since posting a 59-57 win over Johnston on Tuesday for their sixth straight victory.
Waukee is 7-2 in the league and 10-2 overall. The Warriors won the first meeting at Ankeny, 66-59, on Dec. 12.
