WARDSVILLE - Having the goal of making it further in the postseason than the previous season is not out of the ordinary.
But it's not ordinary actually accomplishing that year after year.
The Blair Oaks Falcons have made the progression of winning a district title and reaching the Class 3 quarterfinals in 2019 to playing in the state semifinals in 2020.
Heading into this season, the Falcons have three returning starters and a slew of bench players back as well.
"It's just a matter of you've been there, you know what to expect, you know what it takes to get there," Blair Oaks coach Ryan Fick said, "and then taking every day and not wasting opportunities and knowing, 'Hey, if we're gonna get back there, this is what we've got to do day in and day out.' I think that you kind of see that with this group."
Blair Oaks will get the season started tonight in the semifinals of the Tri-County Conference Tournament. The top-seeded Falcons will take on No. 4 seed Hallsville at 8:30 p.m. at Blair Oaks.
No. 8 seed Eldon forfeited its first-round game against Blair Oaks because of COVID-19.
Back after starting for the Falcons last season are junior forward Luke Northweather, junior guard Quinn Kusgen and senior guard Jake Closser.
Northweather averaged about 16 points and 9.0 rebounds last season, shooting better than 66 percent from the floor.
At 6-foot-9, Northweather has ball handling ability and can score from anywhere on the floor.
"Luke's really spent a lot of time working on his perimeter shooting," Fick said. "I think that's improved. He's just a scorer. He's a guy that likes the physicality around the basket and can go score for us down there, but can really stretch the floor as well."
Kusgen, who made 80-of-179 3-pointers last season while scoring more than 14 points per game, also has the ability to finish at the rim.
"I think something that he focused on is just becoming stronger and being able to take contact," Fick said. "He's got great body control to the basket, but now you add the fact that he can take a little contact, take some lumps and still finish at the basket."
Closser has been a well-rounded player for the Falcons, having the skills to score, rebound, distribute and defend in a system that focuses on guarding opponents man-to-man.
"We like to get up and guard and use our length and athleticism," Fick said.
The other two seniors for the Falcons are guard Carson Prenger and 6-9 center Justin Backes.
Adding depth inside the paint is junior forward Brysan Jeffries.
Guard Dylan Hair could be in position to start after coming off the bench as a freshman.
Sophomore guard Zach Henry, and junior guards Thomas McCauley, Konnor Morriss, Brayden Lehmen and Zach Herigon round out the varsity squad.
"We've got guys that can share the basketball," Fick said. "And I think we've got guys that have played together long enough that they trust each other and have confidence that they can make that extra pass and the next guy is going to knock a shot down or make a make a play at the basket."
With the Blair Oaks football team slated to play in the Class 3 state championship game Saturday night, the Falcon basketball team will be missing some key pieces early in the season.
That will give junior Sean Mayer, and sophomores Chase Schnieders and Clayton Temmen a chance to get varsity experience.
Blair Oaks will have a difficult non-conference schedule this season, with a trip to Columbia to face Class 5 quarterfinalist Rock Bridge, the Joe Machens Great 8 Classic at Fleming Fieldhouse and a matchup with Class 2 quarterfinalist Greenwood in the Central Bank Shootout at Rackers Fieldhouse.
With COVID-19 concerns cancelling the third-place games back in March, Blair Oaks' season ended after its semifinal loss to Cardinal Ritter.
With schedule changes already plentiful and the possibility of more to come, the Falcons realize how fortunate they are to be starting the season.
"We were shut down for so long in the spring and into the summer a little bit, I really can see that they come in every day and don't take anything for granted," Fick said. "You just never know when things could change."