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FORT DODGE 55, DM EAST 47

Fort Dodge - Drew Arends 4-6 2-2 10, Sam Peters 4-7 1-2 9, Jay Johnson 1-5 5-6 8, Darreus Caston 3-7 0-0 7, Willie Williams 0-2 2-4 2, Jon Spencer 4-6 0-0 8, Jontel Clayton 2-6 2-2 7, Reid Riessen 2-5 0-0 4, Mark Wilson 0-2 0-0 0, Tyler Ficken 0-2 0-0 0, Alex Herrington 0-0 0-0 0, Taylor Hockel 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 20-48 12-16 55.

Des Moines East - Cameron Shivers 8-14 0-2 18, Matt Grover 4-6 4-4 12, Tyler Jensen 3-7 0-0 8, Louie Ingoli 3-14 0-0 7, DaShawn Cason 1-3 0-1 2, Conner Kouri 0-2 0-1 0, Brandon Long 0-1 0-0 0, Learie Jones 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 19-47 4-8 47.

Quarter scores: Fort Dodge led 14-4, 33-17, 46-28. Three-point goals: Fort Dodge 3-18 (Johnson 1-1, Clayton 1-3, Caston 1-4, Williams 0-2, Ficken 0-2, Riessen 0-2, Arends 0-2, Peters 0-1, Wilson 0-1); East 5-15 (Shivers 2-4, Jensen 2-6, Ingoli 1-3, Cason 0-1, Long 0-1). Turnovers: Fort Dodge 16, East 15. Total fouls: Fort Dodge 16, East 17. Fouled out: Cason.

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The Fort Dodge boys basketball team shot out of the gate a year ago, only to sputter down the stretch when wins matter most.

Head coach Tom Daniel is hoping his second season at the helm will show the kind of gradual progression that makes his ballclub a dangerous one in late February - not necessarily early December.

The Dodgers took the first step in the right direction with a 55-47 victory over Des Moines East in their home opener here Friday, bouncing back from a 20-point setback at Ankeny earlier in the week.

''We're not as concerned with wins and losses right now,'' Daniel said. ''We're a work in progress, with a new offense and a lot of kids - predominantly juniors - settling into different roles and responsibilities.

''We started 3-0 last year and look where that got us. Right now, it's about simply getting better and improving from one game to the next, and (last night), we definitely did that.''

Six different players scored at least seven points for FDSH, which led by as many as 21 late in the third quarter. Junior starters Drew Arends (10 points) and Sam Peters (9) led the balanced attack, with senior captain Jay Johnson (8) and junior power forward Jon Spencer (8) right behind.

''We weren't finishing quarters well at all Tuesday (at Ankeny), so it was nice to see us reverse that trend in every one with the exception of the fourth (Friday),'' Daniel said. ''We used some different combinations and let our foot off the gas a little (up by 18 with less than five minutes remaining) late, but we're still learning and trying to get our chemistry and substitution patterns down.

''I was very pleased with the effort. The kids were better defensively, and we got good balance on offense. If we can spread it out that way throughout the course of the season in the pattern of a Des Moines Hoover, we could be tough to stop down the road.''

After a slow start - the contest was tied at 4-4 almost five minutes in - Fort Dodge went on a 10-0 run to close the opening period, with Peters and Spencer controlling things underneath. Baskets by Arends and Spencer extended the Dodger advantage to 33-17 at the end of the first half, and a 7-0 spurt - with a triple from Johnson and field goals again by Arends and Spencer - made it 46-25 with 1:33 left in the third quarter.

''We got solid efforts from Sam and Jon underneath, and Drew bounced back nicely from the Ankeny game,'' Daniel said. ''Willie (Williams) and Jontel (Clayton) did a nice job rebounding and playing bigger than they are (each are 5-foot-10).

''A lot of our guys played as sophomores last year, and I think their heads were spinning a little from being at the varsity level and having so much on their plate. We got off to a quick start record-wise and got a little ahead of ourselves, thinking we were better than we actually were. We obviously don't want to follow the same pattern; it's about staying sharp mentally and making the kind of strides in practice and during games that will help us as the season goes on.''

Fort Dodge enjoyed a solid advantage on the glass, and it went 12 of 16 at the free throw line - doubling the attempts by the Scarlets from the charity stripe. Cameron Shivers paced East (0-2) with 18 points, while Matt Grover contributed 12.

The Dodgers visit Southeast Polk (2-0) on Tuesday at 7:45 p.m.

Contact Eric Pratt at (515) 573-2141, or by e-mail at sports@messengernews.net