Balance is the name of the game for the Lebanon boys basketball team and Taylor Johnson, Trae Crump and Kyle Moore are doing their part to make the Greyhounds' offense run smoothly.
The three seniors, who comprise the starting lineup, along with senior Tyler Sonsoucie and junior Tommy Pilackas, have been consistent contributors for Lebanon, which is 19-8 overall and 8-1 in the Kaskaskia Division of the Cahokia Conference heading into Thursday's game at Dupo.
"We don't always have a go-to guy, which is both good and bad," Greyhounds coach Chad Cruthis said. "You want a kid that can step forward and say ‘I want the ball' at critical times, but that also makes it easier to key on one or two guys.
"Taylor shoots the ball very well and that's something he takes a lot of pride in. Anytime you shoot 40 percent from the 3-point line, that makes you a pretty good threat. The biggest thing we've tried to do this year is to get him to be more than just a shooter and to get to the rim and do some other things. He's worked on that and if he continues to improve, he'll finish with a pretty decent career here."
Among the three players, only Johnson started as a junior.
"Going into the season, we knew Taylor, Tyler and Tommy were going to be pretty solid, but Trae and Kyle were the wild cards," Cruthis said. "We were hoping to get four or five points (apiece) from them every game and that they wouldn't turn the ball over very much. Trae has excelled as a point guard and defensively he's proved he can do some things we didn't think he could do. Kyle has shot better than we expected. He's taken that fifth starter role and really run with it."
For the most part, the seniors are pleased with Lebanon's performance.
"We were planning on getting a conference championship and 20-plus wins," Crump said. "Of course, the ultimate goal is always to get to state."
Like their coach, the players are trying to find ways to take advantage of the Greyhounds' offensive balance.
"Most teams play zone against us and that slows us down a little because we're a run-and-gun team, but Coach (Cruthis) has a zone offense we've been working on and we're getting pretty good at it," Crump said.
Crump was a varsity reserve as a junior, scoring 54 points in 28 games. Moving into the starting lineup this season, he's second on the team in scoring (11.3 points per game) and is third in 3-pointers with 28.
"Over the summer, I learned how to handle pressure better and I think I was ready for it when the season started," Crump said. "They look to me to get the offense going, and if the offense isn't working, I have to penetrate and kick it out.
"I'm a lot more comfortable now. Last year, I would get in a game and I was already sweating."
Johnson started as a junior, averaging 10.5 points per game. This season, he's third on the team in scoring at 10.6 ppg and leads the Greyhounds in 3-pointers with 56.
"The last two years, I've shot the ball very well," said Johnson, who also played varsity as a sophomore. "What keeps (opponents) on their toes is that we've got a well-rounded starting five. We can shoot, we can dribble, we can go to the hole and we can play defense."
Johnson used to run cross country, but gave it up because of recurring back problems. He isn't sure if he will run track this spring.
"My sophomore year in cross country, I did fine and I went to state, but later that year it started bothering me in track," Johnson said. "The weird thing is, it doesn't bother me at all in basketball."
Moore saw limited varsity action as a junior, scoring 40 points in 15 games. This season, he is averaging 8.4 points per game.
"I do a pretty good job getting to the hole, but my mid-range (jumper) is pretty nice," said Moore, who also plays soccer and baseball. "I worked a lot in the summer basketball league and that pretty much got me to where I am now."
After finishing the regular season Friday at home against Wesclin, Lebanon will play Dupo again at 6 p.m. Tuesday in the quarterfinals of the Class 1A Bunker Hill Regional. The Greyhounds are seeded second behind Madison in the seven-team tournament.
"We've got to try and put four quarters together," Moore said. "If we can do that, we'll be golden."
