The Lions (13-8) will play in a district semifinal for the second straight year when they face No. 2 Preble Shawnee (18-4) at 5:30 Saturday at Butler. Preble topped No. 19 Mechanicsburg (4-16) 67-29 Thursday.
“It’s going in a great direction,” Chastain said. “Yes, we’re going to have multiple seniors next year, but our underclasses are really coming up and they’re really playing well, and our JV team had a good year this year.”
While a good mix among the classes is coming, the present is led by 6-foot point guard Kalerio Reaves and 6-7 forward Lee Benson III. Against Triad, Reaves scored 15, Benson 11 and Malik Thomas added 10.
“They play hard,” Chastain said. “They’re dedicated, they’re committed to the program, which is huge for us. That’s been my goal to change the culture.”
Reaves loves playing with his classmates and spending time together off the court, even at the bowling alley now and then.
“I feel like this team brings energy and fun,” he said. “It’s just the bond we’ve got off the court that’s making us a better team.”
The Lions came out fast against Triad (9-15) and took control with full-court pressure and steals and built a 44-13 halftime lead. It was their first game since Feb. 12. Chastain elected a first-round bye to give his team a rest and to get in some needed practice time. COVID-19 issues caused the schedule to stack up late in the season.
“They played like I thought they would because they were so hungry to play,” Chastain said.
The next challenge is Preble Shawnee and 6-5 sophomore Mason Shrout who averages 25 points a game. Shrout scored 15 against Mechanicsburg, but the Arrows didn’t need him to score a lot. Ethan Woodard added 11 and 10 Arrows scored.
“Shrout is good, and they’ve got complementary parts that’s pretty good,” Chastain said. “We’ve definitely got to play a lot harder. No question about that.”
Preble didn’t get off to a fast start against Mechanicsburg and led 29-11 at halftime. But the Arrows got it rolling in the third quarter and got to a running clock when they pushed their lead past 35 in the fourth quarter.
“First half I thought defensively we were really good,” first-year Preble coach Jake Turner said. “We were lacking offensively, we were standing around a lot, there wasn’t a lot of ball movement, so I was a little disappointed in that. The second half defensively we were solid again for the most part, and offensively we finally started moving the ball, we had some open shots and we knocked them down.”
Turner said a young team’s tournament jitters might have played a part, but he said that can’t be the case against Meadowdale.
“It’s going to be a tough matchup,” he said. “They’re really good. I think we’re really good, too. I’m excited for the challenge.”
Division IV: Defending state champion and top-seeded Botkins rolled past No. 13 Riverside 71-33 at Piqua High School. Jameson Meyer scored 20 points, Jacob Pleiman 19 and Carter Pleiman 14 to lead the Trojans (22-2).
Botkins will face No. 3 Russia in the district semifinals Saturday at 7 p.m. at Piqua. Russia defeated No. 7 Newton 72-55.
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