The Siloam Springs boys basketball team is off to a good start to its summer schedule.
The Panthers went to a team camp at Pittsburg (Kan.) State last week and played .500 ball in three games and a tournament in the camp, according to head coach Tim Stewart.
"It's been an encouraging start to the summer," Stewart said.
The Panthers played several Missouri schools and Stewart said the coaches came away impressed with how the players competed.
"This team has that same feel as last year's team," Stewart said. "They work hard, they share the ball and they're good teammates to each other."
Stewart said all the games the Panthers played in were "winnable" games, and in some the Panthers simply didn't make the plays late in the game to get the victory.
"We want to win every game, but there's bigger things we're looking for right now than win-loss record," he said. "It's been fun to see the growth in kids."
Stewart said rising senior Noah Karp has emerged as a go-to guy for the Panthers.
Karp is the Panthers' leading returning scorer from last year's team after averaging 5.1 points per game.
"Noah has established himself as a leader for us and really been a workhorse," Stewart said.
Stewart said seniors Josh Hunt, Harrison Kretzer, Charlie Jones and Omar Vazquez have also played well so far.
Karp, Hunt and Kretzer will attempt to fill the void left in the post by graduated All-State senior Kyle Snavely.
Stewart said Josh Heinrichs and Spencer Lashley have been playing both guard and forward, while Vazquez, Jones, Diego Flores, Tyler Pettit and Sam Everett have played the guard positions.
"We're seeing guys step up and do the things we're asking them to do and battle through some adversity and compete," Stewart said.
The Panthers will head to a team camp at Locust Grove (Okla.) on Monday and Tuesday of this week and get seven to nine more games in.
Stewart said several teams are coming on June 21 to play some games.
The Arkansas Activities Association dead period is June 27 through July 9. The Panthers will workout after the dead period until the last week of July. They'll return to practicing normally when school starts in late August.
Sports on 06/12/2016