-Messenger photo by Britt Kudla Reggie Pederson of Fort Dodge puts up a shot against Ames on Tuesday

With a little under two minutes left in Fort Dodge’s boys basketball game against No. 5 (Class 4A) Ames on Tuesday, Little Cyclone reserve Masiah Younis — the fourth player off the bench who had one field goal all season coming in — converted an impressive tip dunk off a missed shot to cap his eight-point fourth quarter.

It was that kind of night for — and message sent to — the Dodgers, who were simply outmatched in a 61-26 loss to the undisputed kings of the Iowa Alliance Conference North Division.

Ames pushed its league win streak to 20 dating back nearly three full years by overwhelming Fort Dodge with a combination of talent, toughness and tenacity — all trademarks of Vance Downs-coached teams.

“I just have so much respect for Coach Downs and that program,” said FDSH head coach Willie Williams. “It’s not just about their skill. Year in and year out, they bring the same mentality to the table. They’re going to lock you down defensively. They’re going to limit transition (opportunities), then grind you into contested (half-court) looks.

“We played hard and did some positive things. But they took us out of it both physically and mentally from the start. They just wouldn’t let us get to anything we were trying to do. Again, just typical Ames.”

The Little Cyclones (8-1 overall) were relentless in the first quarter, opening up a 20-1 lead. A bucket by Dodger senior Tytrell Mosley with 6:10 left until halftime finally ended the field-goal drought, but Fort Dodge went on to make just two shots total before the intermission in 19 attempts.

It wasn’t all bad news for the Dodgers (1-8), who were only out-scored 25-20 the rest of the way. Plagued all year by turnover issues, Williams’s team committed a season-low 10 in their first contest of 2026 compared to 13 by Ames. The three-point shooting was virtually identical between the rivals, and Fort Dodge had flashes of solid defense — including two blocked shots by junior Teddy Johnson to open the evening.

When the Little Cyclones needed a basket, though, they turned to a decisive size and strength advantage. Ames bullied its way to 22 baskets on 29 two-point attempts, led by senior Will Thomas’s 17 points and classmate Brandon Johnson’s 13.

The Little Cyclones’ starting lineup goes 6-foot-3, 6-3, 6-3 and 6-9 after the 5-11 Thomas — their most talented scorer. Downs then brings 6-8 Marach Dau and the 6-3 Younis off the bench.

“A lot of it is just a physical difference, but it’s also a mentality that comes from their system (of success),” Williams said. “At the end of the day, you have to be able to put the ball in the hoop. With 26 points and (nine field goals), you’re not going to win, no matter how well you play defensively.

“The effort and energy was there for the most part, and we took care of the ball better, but our execution and play-making ability has to get better and more consistent. Ames deserves a lot of credit for keeping us from doing what we wanted to do, but you also can’t just make excuses. No one’s going to feel sorry for us. We have to find more and better ways to score.”

Ames has the top-rated scoring defense in 4A at 39.8 points allowed per game. They’ve held all but one opponent — Urbandale (6-2), which scored a 63-57 road upset of the Little Cyclones on Monday — under 50 points.

The Dodgers, meanwhile, have registered the least amount of points in 4A to date at 36.6 a night.

Since a Feb. 3, 2023 loss to Waterloo East, Ames has been unbeaten in the IAC North. The Little Cyclones have a record of 104-26 as a program since 2020-21.

Fort Dodge returns to action on Friday at home against Sioux City West (5-3) at 7 p.m. The Wolverines lost to Sioux City Heelan on Tuesday, 74-61.

AMES 61, FORT DODGE 26

Ames — Will Thomas 7-8 2-2 17, Brandon Johnson 6-9 1-1 13, DJ Bijiek 2-2 0-0 4, Kuach Kuach 0-1 2-4 2, Max Burgason-Sutton 0-1 0-0 0, Masiah Younis 4-4 0-0 8, Marach Dau 3-7 0-0 6, Nyier Chuol 2-3 0-0 4, Saul Negrete 1-1 0-0 3, Ben Weiss 1-2 0-0 3, Moses Lueth 0-1 0-0 0, Jaishaun Brooks 0-1 0-0 0, Dau Lual 0-2 0-0 0. Totals: 26-42 5-7 61.

Fort Dodge — Hayden Zuspann 2-6 0-0 6, Tytrell Mosley 2-4 0-0 5, Reggie Pederson 1-10 2-2 4, Brody Maehl 2-8 0-0 4, Teddy Johnson 0-0 0-0 0, Carter Hemrick 1-3 1-2 3, Carter Morris 1-1 0-0 3, Tisyn Hook 0-0 1-2 1, Kauner Jensen 0-1 0-0 0, Gavin Davis 0-6 0-0 0. Totals: 9-39 4-6 26.

Quarter scores: Ames led 20-1, 36-6, 50-13. Three-point goals: Ames 4-12 (Kuach 1-1, Negrete 1-1, Thomas 1-2, Weiss 1-2, Burgason-Sutton 0-1, Dau 0-1, Chuol 0-1, Brooks 0-1, Lual 0-1, Lueth 0-1); Fort Dodge 4-14 (Zuspann 2-5, Mosley 1-1, Morris 1-1, Davis 0-4, Hemrick 0-2, Pederson 0-1). Turnovers: Ames 13, Fort Dodge 10. Total fouls: Ames 8, Fort Dodge 9.