This year’s Van-Far senior boys have been together for years.
The Indians earned their second straight 30-point victory and 13th straight against Eastern Missouri Conference rival Mark Twain …
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This year’s Van-Far senior boys have been together for years.
The Indians earned their second straight 30-point victory and 13th straight against Eastern Missouri Conference rival Mark Twain with a 71-34 win on Friday for Senior Night. Van-Far (15-7, 5-2 EMO) had a 47-19 lead at halftime.
Head coach Pat Connaway said the Indians were aiming for a 40-point first half and did so by pushing the ball down the court.
“We came out fast,” Connaway said. “We dictated the tempo, sped them up and put 25 points up in the first quarter.”
Pacey Reading, Gaven Gaston, Evan Utterback, Gibson Condie and Jackson Fischer were honored with a Senior Night ceremony before the game and then three of them finished in double figures. Reading led Van-Far with 22 points, nine rebounds and seven steals, Condie followed with 17 points and four 3-pointers, Gaston had 12 points, seven rebounds and six assists, and Kaleb Baskett finished with 11 points.
Gaston was in the middle of all the action in the first quarter, finding open teammates on the run as the point guard, and he dished 23 assists in three wins during the week. Connaway said Gaston and his teammates might have been amped up still after the Lady Indians’ victory.
“Pacey is the leading scorer, and everybody knows about him,” Connaway said. “Gaven is the transmission. He is the only one that can pressure. It looks like he was shot out of a cannon. He was focused tonight.”
Two days after having three with double-digit points, the Indians were able to spread the ball around more with four such players against Mark Twain (2-16, 1-5 EMO). Condie hit four 3-pointers in a 69-30 win against Paris and was effective from deep again while Connaway said the junior Baskett showed what he can do.
“We’ve done that several times this year where we’ve had four kids in double figures,” Connaway said. “We’ve been close to getting five. That’s what we tell them in the locker room. ‘You’re going to be a tough out in the postseason when you have our top six log those minutes and any of those can go for double figures on a given night.’”
Connaway said he was glad that Condie decided to play basketball during his senior year, and Condie agrees that was a good decision.
“It was my senior year, and I figured I could deal with one more year of this,” Condie said with a laugh. “It is fun coming out and playing with my boys.”
Condie said he has been playing basketball with the other seniors since fifth grade. He said a lot of chemistry has been built and has led to better play on the floor.
“All of us can go for double digits whenever we need to,” Condie said. “That makes teams step out and guard every one of us.”
As for his contributions, namely his hot shooting, Condie said he doesn’t slack off in practice, and he has that confidence that is necessary for a shooter.
Connaway said it was important he was with this senior group until they graduated before he steps away from being the head coach at the end of the season. He said he has known the kids since they could walk, including the son of his 18-year assistant coach Brett Reading.
“A lot of people thought I would be done once (my son) Nikos was done,” Connaway said. “I really decided in Nikos’ junior year that I was going to be done this year. It was to stay with this group. They are such a good group. They’re fun to be around and make an old guy feel young sometimes.”
The Van-Far seniors have won 73 games and counting, and their worst record was freshman year at a 17-11 record. They have played in two district championship games, and Connaway said he hopes the Indians can advance to a third district title game and win it this time for the program’s first title since 2020. He said they have a good chance now they have gained their second wind after a long and successful football season.
“We had a couple square tires and a couple flats on the bus at the start of the year,” Connaway said. “We finally got some round tires, we’re finally rolling and we need to keep it going.”
Van-Far hosts Christian Fellowship (14-6) at 8 p.m. today.
