Trojans pull away from Comets in 2nd half for 69-54 win

By John Burbridge

sports@charlescitypress.com

CHARLES CITY — Leading by just 1 point at intermission, the Waterloo East Trojans turned up the heat in the second half as the Charles City Comets went cold.

As a result, the visiting Trojans were able to pull away for a 69-54 road victory Monday night at Comet Gym to ring in the 2025 portion of the boys basketball season for both teams.

Waterloo East senior captain Da’Shaundis Moore led all scorers with 26 points while helping the Trojans outscore the Comets 43-29 in the second half to account for much of the margin of victory.

With sticky man-to-man defense employed the entire length of the floor, the Trojans forced a bevy of turnovers in the second half which they immediately cashed in for points.

Moore’s steal and layup put the Trojans up 50-44 with 35 seconds left in the third quarter during — up to that point — a close back-and-forth game.

Waterloo East attained a double-digit advantage for the first time (54-44) early in the fourth quarter with Jadyn Perkins’s layup which was uncontested due to the Trojans breaking the Comets’ press.

When WE senior Ke’Andre Owens snared a Comet inbounds pass in the backcourt and pounded it through the hole with a one-handed tomahawk slam dunk, the Trojans’ lead swelled to 17 (61-44) with Charles City being held scoreless for more than three-and-a-half minutes into the fourth quarter.

Comet senior Akil Knighten led his team with a career-high 13 points. Senior Riley Perez scored 12 by way of four 3-point field goals, and senior captain Jordin Ritter scored 11 for Charles City, which fell to 4-4.

Waterloo East improved to 2-4.

Charles City’s next game is this Friday when it hosts undefeated Northeast Iowa Conference foe Decorah, which is currently ranked No. 3 among Class 3A schools according to the rankings released on Monday by the Iowa High School Athletic Association.

WATERLOO EAST 69,

CHARLES CITY 54

Scoring By Quarters

Waterloo East 12 14 26 17 — 69

Charles City 14 11 19 10 — 54

Individual Scoring

WATERLOO EAST — Ke’Andre Owens 10, Quenden Hart 6, Jadyn Perkins 6, Da’Shaundis Moore 26, Jeremy Waters-Wright 9, Gianni Gary 5, Jeremiah Clark 11.

CHARLES CITY — Victor Ward 8, Nick Williams 2, Jordin Ritter 11, Henry Ruzicka 6, Riley Perez 12, Akil Knighten 13, Jackson Ruzicka 2.

RECORDS — Charles City 4-4, Waterloo East 2-4