On the Hunt
Senior turns up game a notch
Josh Hunt is doing exactly what senior boys basketball players are expected to do at Siloam Springs — step up and lead.
After spending most of his sophomore and junior seasons playing in a junior varsity role, Hunt has emerged in the 2016-17 season as one of Siloam Springs’ most consistent scorers on the offensive end along with showing flashes of ability elsewhere on the court.
Heading into Tuesday’s nonconference game against Providence Academy, Hunt was the Panthers’ top scorer at nearly 11 points per game, along with being one of the top 3-point shooters and rebounders on the team.
“Josh has stayed the course,” said Siloam Springs head coach Tim Stewart. “He’s always been an intelligent player that can figure things out quickly. That’s led him to where each year he’s improved, and he’s a good senior leader for us.”
And, Stewart said, it doesn’t hurt that he stands 6 feet, 5 inches tall.
“He’s always been able to shoot it, but with that added height he’s been able to get that shot off,” Stewart said. “He’s been one of our most consistent 3-point shooters.”
It’s been an up-and-down season through the first 20 games for the Panthers (7-13, 2-4 5A/6A District 1), who have lost eight games by less than 10 points.
But the Panthers are on a roll recently with two league wins at Russellville, 57-46, on Jan. 17, and at home against Greenwood, 57-48, last Friday. They would
have had another win the previous Friday had it not been for a half-court buzzer-beater from Alma’s Nathan Corder to give the Airedales a 54-52 victory.
“There’s been some games that have gotten taken away from us and some that we should have won obviously,” Hunt said.
For homecoming on Friday, the Panthers will play first at 6 p.m. against Farmington — a team that is one of the few to hand the Panthers a lopsided loss. The Cardinals, behind a then-school record 49 points from senior Matt Wilson, defeated Siloam Springs 71-48 at Cardinal Arena in Farmington.
Hunt insists that the Panthers are better than what they showed that night.
“We want to show everybody what we’re really made of,” Hunt said.
Hunt has shown what he’s made of this season, scoring in double digits in 14 of Siloam Springs’ first 20 games. His season-high of 20 points came in a 5949 road win at Tahlequah Sequoyah on Dec. 16.
He’s hit 27 of 69 (39.1 percent) from behind the 3-point line and 40 of 54 (74.1 percent) from the free-throw line. He’s second on the team with 110 rebounds behind Harrison Kretzer, who leads with 124.
“I feel like I’ve done my best and I just want to keep doing that and finish the season,” Hunt said. “I think that’s the way all us seniors are. We may not have the best record, but we all know we want to finish strong and not quit.”
Hunt smiles when talking about his senior teammates, particularly forwards Kretzer, Noah Karp and guard Charlie Jones.
Kretzer (10.5 ppg) and Karp (10.4 ppg) are second and third on the team in scoring, and Jones (9.3 ppg) is right behind them, despite having battled some injuries. He also mentioned senior Josh Heinrichs who chipped in nine points in the win Friday against Greenwood.
“It’s been awesome to see Josh Heinrichs step up the last few weeks,” Hunt said. “I think we’re all stepping up and we’ve all been stepping up the last couple of weeks and playing more to our potential.”
All the seniors are a lot like Hunt and share the same values, Stewart said.
“These seniors have stayed the course,” Stewart said. “They’re well-rounded kids with good foundations. They’re able to come in and work hard and take coaching. That’s why we think they’ll be able to continue to improve throughout their season to the end.”
Hunt said this year’s seniors have taken a page out of the book of last year’s seniors and many other groups before, who prided themselves at playing the game the right way and representing Siloam Springs.
“I’ve definitely had a lot of good seniors ahead of me,” Hunt said. “The last couple of years have taught me a lot.”
When basketball season ends — hopefully, Hunt adds, after a run in the Class 6A State Tournament — Hunt will trade in his high tops for a pair of spikes and rejoin the Panther baseball team. Hunt was a starter for the Panthers at first base and he pitched for Siloam Springs as well last year.
He’s considering playing college baseball and hopes to major in computer science.
Stewart doesn’t have any doubts he’ll be successful in whatever he winds up doing.
“Josh is an even better person than he is a basketball player,” Stewart said. “He’s a tremendous student athlete and a really good leader for us on and off the court.”