High School

Basketball Notebook: No. 1 Johnston rallies to remain perfect

Jenkins, Lewis help Dragons erase halftime deficit, top Waukee Northwest

Dana Becker

Jenica Lewis and Johnston rallied to top Waukee Northwest, 57-48.
Jenica Lewis and Johnston rallied to top Waukee Northwest, 57-48. / Cody Scanlan/The Register / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The No. 1 (Class 5A) Johnston girls were pushed to their limit on Tuesday night against third-ranked Waukee Northwest.

Down by nine at the half, and trailing by two entering the fourth, the Dragons rallied, scoring a 57-48 victory to improve to 12-0. Johnston outscored the Wolves in the final eight minutes, 18-7.

Amani Jenkins, who was recently nominated for McDonald’s All-American consideration, scored a game-high 20 points on 9 of 10 shooting from the field. She also led the Dragons with four rebounds, adding three blocks, three assists and two steals.

Jenica Lewis added 15 points and Ari Phillips had 13. Both Lewis and Phillips, a junior and sophomore, sank three 3-pointers.

Romey Croatt, a sophomore, had a team-high 17 for Waukee Northwest, adding five assists and four rebounds. Vana Bilic had 12 points and Logan Vogt scored 11.

Waukee Northwest uses 13 triples to get past Johnston

The Waukee Northwest boys flexed their shooting skills in a 67-48 victory over Johnston.

Behind 13 made 3-pointers, the Wolves outscored the Dragons in the second half, 36-23, including 21-9 in the fourth. Peyton McCollum had three of those triples, finishing with 22 points, as both Landon Davis and Bode Goodman each added three made 3-pointers. 

Goodman had a double-double, scoring 14 points with 10 rebounds to go along with six assists and two steals. 

For Johnston, Nicare Cavil had 12 points and Seth Gipple finished with 10.

Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln remains perfect, tops Sioux City East

In a 4A showdown, Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln used a balanced effort to stay unbeaten, topping Sioux City East, 60-55.

The Lynx used a 16-8 third quarter to secure the win. Etienne Higgins led four players in double figures for Lincoln with 14 points as Creighton Bracker added 12 points and 14 rebounds with three steals.

Clark sparks Keokuk past Fort Madison

Jaxon Clark scored 41 points, including 32 in the second half, to lead Keokuk past Fort Madison, 61-50. The junior also had 17 rebounds, with 10 coming on the offensive end.

Clark, a 6-foot-11 junior who has had the likes of Matt Painter and Fran McCaffery in to watch him this year, was 19 of 25 from the field, draining both of his free throws with a made 3-pointer. 

Julian Dear and Kenden Bowie both scored 14 to lead Fort Madison.

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Dana Becker
DANA BECKER

Dana Becker has been a sports writer in Iowa since 2000, writing for The Fort Dodge Messenger, Mason City Globe-Gazette, Cedar Rapids Gazette and others. Dana resides in northcentral Iowa and started as a writer with SB Live Sports in 2022 focused on the state of Iowa. Along with providing coverage of football and wrestling, Dana also spotlights cross country, swimming, basketball, track and field, soccer, tennis, golf, baseball and softball. He began writing for High School on SI in 2023.

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