Ankeny Fanatic

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Boys' Basketball

‘You want to get the best of the best’: Jags hire Delger, Harken to coach hoops teams

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Ankeny Centennial Activities Director Nate Lingren didn't have to look very far to find replacements for legendary basketball coaches Scott DeJong and Bob Fontana. Both of the Jaguars' new coaches were already in the building. Matt Delger, Fontana's former assistant, has been hired to take over the boys' program. He was introduced on Wednesday. "I … [Read more...] about ‘You want to get the best of the best’: Jags hire Delger, Harken to coach hoops teams

Centennial guard Jensen commits to play basketball next year at Wartburg College

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Ankeny Centennial senior guard Rex Jensen has committed to play basketball for Wartburg College next year. Jensen announced his decision on social media last week. "Blessed to announce I will be continuing my academic and basketball career at Wartburg College!" Jensen tweeted on X. Jensen helped the Jaguars to a 5-17 record this season. He started … [Read more...] about Centennial guard Jensen commits to play basketball next year at Wartburg College

‘I need to catch my breath’: Fontana steps down from Jags’ program after 12 years

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The only head coach in Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball history has stepped down from the program. Bob Fontana has resigned from his position after guiding the Jaguars to a 173-101 record over the last 12 seasons. "Not many coaches can say they got to come home and start a new program in a new school," said Fontana, who compiled a 474-299 mark … [Read more...] about ‘I need to catch my breath’: Fontana steps down from Jags’ program after 12 years

‘They just kept battling’: Jaguars finish 5-17 season with 78-44 loss at No. 4 NW

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The Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team didn't go down without a fight. The Jaguars put a scare into fourth-ranked Waukee Northwest before the host Wolves pulled away in the second half for a 78-44 victory in a Class 4A substate semifinal on Friday. "Our kids were playing hard and playing fearless," said Centennial coach Bob Fontana. "It was tied … [Read more...] about ‘They just kept battling’: Jaguars finish 5-17 season with 78-44 loss at No. 4 NW

Jaguars overcome slow start to rout S.C. North, will face No. 4 Waukee NW Friday

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The Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team is guaranteed to finish the season with a losing record. But that doesn't mean that the Jaguars can't make some noise in the postseason. Centennial kept its season alive on Monday by rolling to a 78-47 victory at Sioux City North in a Class 4A substate quarterfinal. The Jaguars were one of three teams from … [Read more...] about Jaguars overcome slow start to rout S.C. North, will face No. 4 Waukee NW Friday

‘We knew it was going to be a dogfight’: Jaguars fall to S.E. Polk in season finale

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It's time for the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team to put the regular season in the rear-view mirror. "The records don't matter in the postseason," said Centennial senior Sean Tunks. The Jaguars closed out the regular season on Thursday with a 53-49 loss to visiting Southeast Polk. It was a matchup of two squads trying to avoid finishing in the … [Read more...] about ‘We knew it was going to be a dogfight’: Jaguars fall to S.E. Polk in season finale

No. 7 Little Cyclones pull away in 2nd half for 57-29 victory over Centennial boys

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For the first 20 minutes of Tuesday's game at Ames, the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team hung around with the seventh-ranked squad in Class 4A. The Jaguars were in a position to possibly pull off an upset with a strong finish, trailing by just 28-22 midway through the third quarter. But then the Little Cyclones cranked up the defensive pressure … [Read more...] about No. 7 Little Cyclones pull away in 2nd half for 57-29 victory over Centennial boys

Waukee boys overcome Jacobson’s injury to beat Jaguars, stay in CIML title hunt

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Tuesday's game at Ankeny Centennial got off to a bad start for the Waukee boys' basketball team. The eighth-ranked Warriors lost leading scorer Evan Jacobson to a leg injury in the opening minutes of the contest. Jacobson was helped to the locker room and did not return to action. "You don't wish that on anybody, but they had some other kids step up," … [Read more...] about Waukee boys overcome Jacobson’s injury to beat Jaguars, stay in CIML title hunt

Fontana named state of Iowa recipient of Wooden Legacy Coach of the Year award

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Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball coach Bob Fontana has been named the state of Iowa recipient of the John Wooden Legacy Coach of the Year award.  Fontana was presented his award prior to Tuesday's game at home against Waukee. "I'm very humbled and feel honored to receive this award from the Wooden Foundation and the National High School … [Read more...] about Fontana named state of Iowa recipient of Wooden Legacy Coach of the Year award

Centennial boys earn road win over S.E. Polk for their first CIML Conference victory

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It took awhile, but the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team finally earned its first CIML Conference victory. The Jaguars made some big plays down the stretch and posted a 52-49 win at Southeast Polk on Friday. Both squads are now 1-13 in the league and will meet again in the regular-season finale on Feb. 20 at … [Read more...] about Centennial boys earn road win over S.E. Polk for their first CIML Conference victory

‘We just didn’t knock down our shots’: Scoring drought proves costly for Jaguars

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) Cabryn Klingner laid the ball up past a defender, off the glass and into the hoop for the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team during the early stages of the third quarter in Tuesday's game at Johnston. Unfortunately for the Jaguars, Klingner’s layup ended up being their only … [Read more...] about ‘We just didn’t knock down our shots’: Scoring drought proves costly for Jaguars

‘We got off to a good start’: Centennial boys build big lead, roll past Railsplitters

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After getting off to a 1-11 start, the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team has now won two of its last three games--by an average of 30 points. The Jaguars built a 32-12 halftime lead and cruised to a 65-36 victory at Des Moines Lincoln in a non-conference game on Saturday. They are now 3-12 on the season, while Lincoln's … [Read more...] about ‘We got off to a good start’: Centennial boys build big lead, roll past Railsplitters

Centennial boys suffer another injury, then drop 62-41 decision at No. 6 Waukee

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) Before the ball even tipped off, the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team was battling some adversity. The Jaguars were already dealing with a recent string of injuries and illnesses, all while having to travel out to Waukee on Friday to face the sixth-ranked Warriors. Centennial fell into a hole early on and went … [Read more...] about Centennial boys suffer another injury, then drop 62-41 decision at No. 6 Waukee

Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Sean Tunks, Ankeny Centennial boys’ basketball

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Senior Sean Tunks scored 26 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for a double-double to lead the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team to an 80-49 victory over visiting Dallas Center-Grimes on Friday, allowing the Jaguars to snap a seven-game losing skid. He also had three steals and two blocks. Tunks is averaging 10.5 points and … [Read more...] about Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Sean Tunks, Ankeny Centennial boys’ basketball

Jaguars make school-record 16 3-point goals, rout DC-Grimes to snap losing skid

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All it took for the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team to snap a seven-game losing streak was to step out of conference play. Winless in the CIML Conference at 0-11, the Jaguars hosted Dallas Center-Grimes in a non-conference game on Friday and turned in their best performance of the season. Centennial made a school-record 16 3-point … [Read more...] about Jaguars make school-record 16 3-point goals, rout DC-Grimes to snap losing skid

Without Abbott and Fontana, Centennial boys drop 65-49 decision to No. 2 Valley

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This wasn't the break that the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team needed. After struggling to a 1-10 start this season, the Jaguars got some more bad news prior to Tuesday's game against visiting Valley. Sophomore forward Evan Abbott, the squad's leading scorer with an average of 12.3 points per game, was shut down due to a stress fracture in his … [Read more...] about Without Abbott and Fontana, Centennial boys drop 65-49 decision to No. 2 Valley

‘We just have to stay the course’: Struggling Jaguars fall to No. 9 Dowling

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The Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team was looking to pull off an upset Friday against a top-10 opponent. Unfortunately, the Jaguars picked the wrong night to face visiting Dowling Catholic. The ninth-ranked Maroons shot 63.5 percent from the field (33-of-52), including 11-of-19 from 3-point range (57.9 percent), and rolled to an 80-41 … [Read more...] about ‘We just have to stay the course’: Struggling Jaguars fall to No. 9 Dowling