“We’re real pleased with where we’re at,” said Urbana coach Jeremy Dixon. “We’re happy with how we’ve played this year. The thing the guys have really bought into is that we need to keep getting better and better. That’s been our goal.”
The Hillclimbers have won seven in a row, including a 45-43 overtime victory against Columbus DeSales on Saturday.
Despite the winning streak, the Hillclimbers are taking nothing for granted. They face several tough games in the upcoming weeks, including a matchup tonight at Central Buckeye Conference Kenton Trail Division co-leader Shawnee. They also face North College Hill, Greenon, Graham and Springfield down the stretch.
“We’ve got a long way to go,” Dixon said. “We’ve only played 10 of our 21 guaranteed games. We’re not trying to get too far ahead of ourselves. We’re just trying to get better each day.”
The Hillclimbers are led by senior big man Zach Stillings, who’s averaging 17.7 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. Brothers Karl (11.0 points, 6.7 rebounds) and Tristan Singer (9.5 points) have also provided a scoring punch. Guards Connor Johns and Joe Wright are both back in the lineup after missing time with injuries. In their absence, sophomore Alex Niswonger has stepped up, scoring a career-high 24 points against Indian Lake and hitting the game-winning layup in overtime against DeSales.
Urbana is also gunning for its first CBC Mad River Division title in school history. It last won the eight-team CBC in 2000.
It’s 5-0 in the division and holds a 1½-game lead over rival Graham (6-4, 4-2).
“We’ve haven’t talked about it a lot,” Dixon said. “I know it’s cliche, but we really are looking at it one game at a time as far as the league race goes. We’re focusing on the next game in front of us.”
The next game will be a difficult one against Shawnee. The Hillclimbers beat the Braves 35-33 last season.
“They’re going to be tough to handle,” Dixon said. “They’ve got a couple guys who can really score, and defensively, they’re always tough. Going down there, it’s going to be a big challenge for us.”
Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0365, Michael.Cooper@coxinc.com or on Twitter @SNS_Wizard.
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