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Sizzling Ames tops FD boys

Messenger photo by Britt Kudla Malcolm Clayton of Fort Dodge drives to the basket this week.

The Ames boys are one of the top defensive teams in the state.

But over the last three games, the Little Cyclones have taken their offensive skills to the next level.

Clicking on all cylinders here Friday night, Ames picked up an easy 68-38 victory over Fort Dodge in the regular season finale for both schools.

Joe Evans, a 6-foot-3 junior, scored a game-high 27 points on 10-for-10 shooting from the floor to lead Ames (15-6 overall) to its third consecutive win. The Little Cyclones, who were second in Class 4A in team defense entering the night, have averaged 66 points per game during their win streak.

“Ames is a program that we respect,” FDSH head coach Tom Daniel said. “They do things right.

“(Friday) just wasn’t our night. We’ve had probably three games now like that, and this was one of them. Credit Ames, because they shot the ball well.”

The Little Cyclones made a sizzling 25 of 34 from the floor as a team. The five starters were even better, going 23-for-30, including 8 of 11 from the three-point line.

Trey Mosley led the Dodgers (13-8) with nine points, all of which came in the first quarter. Solomon Clayton had seven points, four rebounds and four assists.

“Everything we tried, they had success against,” Daniel said. “(Ames) torched our 2-3 zone, they torched our 1-3-1.

“We had a tough time stopping anything they did.”

After falling behind by five early, Fort Dodge chipped away behind Mosley. The junior was a perfect 4-for-4 from the field, as they trailed just 18-17 after one period of play.

But Ames came right out in the second and quickly built the lead back to nine behind Evans, who scored six in the period.

A Damion Chavez bucket the buzzer-beater gave FDSH some momentum and made it a 33-24 game.

“We competed in the first half,” Daniel said. “In the second half we just couldn’t get anything going. With Ames, you have to make a decision because they aren’t going to beat themselves. We decided to rest our starters and give the other kids some time.”

The Little Cyclones, who are now 9-2 over their last 11, pushed their lead to as many as 25 early in the fourth. This was the 12th straight win for Ames vs. Fort Dodge, with eight of them coming by at least 10 points.

Next up for the Dodgers will be Des Moines East on Monday night in a Class 4A, Substate 2 quarterfinal inside the FDSH gym at 7 p.m. Fort Dodge is 7-4 at home this season.

AMES 68, FORT DODGE 38

Ames — Carter Mumm 0-2 2-2 2, Eric Steyer 7-8 1-1 19, Chuol Chuol 2-3 0-2 6, Japannah Kellogg 4-7 1-3 9, Joe Evans 10-10 5-6 27, Brady Zalasky 0-0 0-0 0, Earl Shedd 0-0 0-2 0, Tyler Carney 0-0 0-0 0, A.J. Seibert 2-3 0-0 5, Makai Muhammad 0-1 0-2 0, Josh Harvey 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 25-34 9-18 68.

Fort Dodge — Trey Mosley 4-5 0-0 9, Malcolm Clayton 3-5 0-0 6, Brady Read 1-3 0-0 2, Jordan Jackson 2-4 0-0 4, Solomon Clayton 2-8 3-4 7, Joe Artist 0-0 0-0 0, Silas Naylor 0-1 0-0 0, Jonny Bowser 1-1 0-0 3, Damion Chavez 1-6 2-2 4, Edker Foy 0-0 0-0 0, Jace Peterson 0-0 0-2 0, Andrew Strait 0-0 0-0 0, Austin Gehlhausen 1-3 0-0 3, Zach Colin 0-0 0-0 0, Marco Fumagalli 0-1 0-2 0, Tyreike Mericle 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 15-37 5-8 38.

Quarter scores: Ames lead 18-17, 33-24, 53-35. Three-point goals: Ames 9-13 (Mumm 0-1, Steyer 4-5, Chuol 2-3, Evans 2-2, Seibert 1-1, Muhammad 0-1); Fort Dodge 3-9 (Mosley 1-1, M. Clayton 0-2, S. Clayton 0-1, Bowser 1-1, Gehlhausen 1-3, Fumagalli 0-1). Total rebounds: Ames 26, Fort Dodge 13. Steals: Ames 2, Fort Dodge 3. Blocked shots: Ames 2, Fort Dodge 1. Team fouls: Ames 8, Fort Dodge 14.

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