Matt Delger

(Story by Stephen McDaniel) Next week, the Ankeny Centennial and Ames boys' basketball teams will be playing to keep their seasons alive in the same Class 4A substate bracket. But the Jaguars were simply focused on the task at hand of hosting the sixth-ranked Little Cyclones while trying to close out the home stretch of the season with some positive … [Read more...] about ‘We just scrapped, and that’s who we are’: Jaguars battle No. 6 Ames down to wire

The Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team has earned back-to-back wins for the first time this season. Fresh off a 17-point victory over visiting Southeast Polk on Friday, the Jaguars traveled to Waterloo West on Saturday afternoon for a non-conference game and defeated the Wahawks, 57-51. "This was a nice, hard-fought win for us," said Centennial … [Read more...] about ‘The game was very physical’: Jaguars sink 22 free throws in victory at Waterloo West

A slow start proved costly for the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team. The Jaguars fell into a 17-4 hole against visiting Johnston by the end of the first quarter in Tuesday's game. Centennial closed the gap to 24-19 at halftime before the Dragons pulled away for a 56-45 victory that allowed them to sweep the season series. "Our defense was … [Read more...] about Gorsh scores career-high 13 points, but Centennial boys can’t overcome slow start

(Story by Jordan Wood) Coming into the Waukee Fieldhouse as an underdog on Friday night, the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team hung tough for awhile before third-ranked Waukee eventually pulled away for a 63-46 victory. The Jaguars trailed by just 32-27 at halftime, but Waukee extended its margin in the second half and went on to post its 11th … [Read more...] about ‘They’re a tough team to come back on’: Jaguars drop 63-46 decision at Waukee

(Story by Stephen McDaniel) The Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team had a chance to claw its way back into Tuesday's game and cut its deficit down to single digits out of halftime. But despite a huge scoring night from junior forward Luke Mitchell, the Jaguars just weren’t able to keep pace with eighth-ranked Urbandale and dropped a 60-39 decision … [Read more...] about ‘It was a tough night’: Centennial boys get off to slow start in loss to No. 8 J-Hawks

A huge second quarter propelled the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team to a non-conference road victory on Monday. The Jaguars outscored Dallas Center-Grimes in the second period, 27-8, to build a 38-19 advantage at halftime. They then held on for a 55-51 win despite scoring just 17 points in the last two quarters. "It was a good one for us," said … [Read more...] about Jaguars build big lead, then hold on for non-conference victory at DC-Grimes

There was no letdown for the second-ranked Waukee Northwest boys' basketball team. After handing No. 3 Dowling Catholic its first loss of the season on Tuesday, the Wolves traveled to Ankeny Centennial on Friday and posted a 66-39 victory to complete a sweep of the season series. The Jaguars, though, put up more of a fight than they did on Dec. 2, when … [Read more...] about ‘Their balance makes it tough’: Wolves top Centennial boys, stay unbeaten in CIML

Luke Mitchell had a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team to a 63-37 victory over visiting Fort Dodge in a non-conference game on Saturday. The Jaguars rebounded from Friday's loss at Johnston by a similar score to raise their overall record to 3-6. It was the eighth straight loss for Fort Dodge, … [Read more...] about Mitchell posts double-double, Prill scores career-high 11 in Centennial boys’ victory

(Story by Stephen McDaniel) Physicality and scrappiness have been two of the key ingredients for the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team this season. But the Jaguars just couldn’t find their groove on either end of the court during their road trip to Johnston on Friday, and the Dragons made them pay for it as Centennial suffered a 66-35 … [Read more...] about ‘Just unfortunate how that game went’: Johnston boys cruise past Jaguars, 66-35

(Story by Stephen McDaniel) There was nothing the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team would’ve loved more than opening 2026 with a big upset victory. But despite a blazing hot start to the game, the Jaguars eventually fell behind in the second half and suffered a 54-46 loss to sixth-ranked Waukee on Friday night at Centennial. “We came out of … [Read more...] about ‘We played right with them’: Centennial boys drop 54-46 decision to No. 6 Waukee

The Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team fought an uphill battle on Friday night. The Jaguars nearly climbed out of an 11-point hole at Urbandale before their rally fell short, resulting in a 42-39 loss to the J-Hawks. Centennial had a chance to force overtime in the final seconds, but a deep 3-pointer by Keaton Kasperbauer bounced off the rim as … [Read more...] about ‘It just didn’t go for us’: Jaguars’ rally falls short when late 3-pointer bounces off rim

(Story by Stephen McDaniel) For the second straight game, the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team took a halftime lead and was just 16 minutes away from its first victory of the season. The Jaguars were still tied with under a minute left in Tuesday's game, but visiting Dowling Catholic made the plays down the stretch to escape with a 46-42 win on … [Read more...] about ‘We’re darn close’: Jaguars battle Dowling down to wire before suffering 46-42 loss