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So when it’s warm enough and dry enough he’s in the driveway – at least it has lines painted on it – or in the garage doing ball handling drills. But the sounds, the smells and the competition are missing. You can bet the day the all-clear is given, he will text his high school coach – Kenton Ridge’s Kris Spriggs – and ask him to unlock the gym.
“It’s going to be a big weight off my shoulders – release all the stress,” he said.
The gym (and the classroom) is where Eberhart excels. He was Spriggs’ first four-year letterwinner and leaves the Cougars as their career scoring leader with 1,374 points. As a senior, Eberhart was the second-leading scorer in the Central Buckeye Conference (19.5) and leading rebounder (10.3). The Cougars finished 18-7 and won two tournament games for the first time in many years.
The awards have stacked up: CBC Kenton Trail Division Player of the Year; third team all-Southwest District in Division II; District 9 Division II player of the year and state all-star game representative; academic all-Ohio.
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Eberhart’s latest accolade is one Clark County players often covet as much if not more than any other: the Dan Hoyt Mr. Basketball award as the best player in the county.
The award is usually given at a banquet honoring the entire all-county team, and the player doesn’t know until his name is called. This year Eberhart was informed by Spriggs that he was the second Cougar in three years to win the award, joining former teammate Jameel Cosby, who plays for Bluffton University.
Joining Eberhart on the coaches all-county team are seniors Fred Shropshire (Emmanuel Christian), Isaac Siemon (Shawnee), Bryce Grim (Southeastern), Larry Stephens (Springfield), Easton Lewis (Tecumseh); juniors Jason Channels (Emmanuel), Drew Mitch (Shawnee); sophomore Jaden Journell (Greenon) and freshman Tyler Galluch (Catholic Central). Spriggs was voted coach of the year.
Eberhart, who will play at NCAA Division II University of Charleston in West Virginia, said the awards and personal accomplishments have been fun. But after tournament disappointments the past two years, he said the most memorable part of his senior year was winning two tournament games with his friends.
“I was super close with my teammates and coaches this year,” he said. “Everyone wishes you could go a few more games, but the path we took I thought we did well. I was proud of us at the end.”
Eberhart was the first name on every opponent’s scouting report. He saw box-and-one and triangle-and-two defenses and double-teams. But he didn’t force shots, Spriggs said.
“He just got better and made the people around him better,” Spriggs said. “He played both ends of the court and didn’t take a play off. When your best player’s your hardest worker that makes everything a lot easier because the kids see him doing that and it sets the tone for practice.”
Practice is all Eberhart has now. He’s doing as many pushups and situps as he can and getting in two miles of running most days. And, of course, he spends a lot of time in the driveway and the garage until he can get back in the gym.
“It’ll be like falling in love again.”
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