The names change, but the formula does not.
Pressure defense, unselfish offense and the willingness to schedule anybody have been the hallmarks of a Vashon boys basketball program that will attempt to win its sixth state championship in the past eight seasons when the Missouri State High School Basketball Championships start this week.
Vashon (23-7), which has won 17 consecutive games, will face Tolton Catholic (21-9) in a Class 4 semifinal at 2 p.m. Thursday at Great Southern Bank Arena on the campus of Missouri State University in Springfield.
Park Hills Central (27-3) and Lafayette St. Joseph (22-7) will play at noon Thursday in the other semifinal.
The Class 4 championship game is scheduled for 2 p.m. Friday.
Stifling perimeter defense has been the calling card for Vashon over the years. The Wolverines often score at least 10 points per game in breakaway layups or dunks, prompted by their suffocating man-to-man pressure.
That defense in spearheaded by sophomore guard Dierre Hill Jr., who is tasked with picking up both the player dribbling the ball and the enthusiasm for Vashon.
“I’m the energy guy, I bring the defensive energy, the all-around energy,” Hill said. “I just come in with the mindset that I am going to lead by playing hard and my brothers follow me.”
In the post, 6-foot-6 senior Kennard Davis protects the rim with an uncanny timing for blocking shots from the help side of the Wolverines’ defense.
“Dierre and Kennard are two of our heartbeats defensively. We always say, when those two bring energy, it’s contagious to the rest of our team,” Vashon coach Tony Irons said.
Vashon has seven players who stand 6-foot-5 or taller. In years past, the Wolverines have stolen dribbles, intercepted dribble handoffs and swiped passes using their exceptional quickness.
While the height of his players is greater this season, Irons’ expectation of how they guard the perimeter has not lessened.
“We pride ourselves on being versatile. All our guys want to play at the next level, and at the next level, if you’re 6-5, you have to guard people that are 6-2 or 6-8,” Irons said. “We try to do a lot of things to simulate what they will see, not just in high school but at the next level, too.”
The Vashon offense also functions at another level.
Despite having several players who can create their own shot, Vashon moves the ball with an unselfishness that empowers everyone, as evidenced by the 10 different players who scored in the first half of the Wolverines’ 77-45 quarterfinal victory over Lutheran St. Charles.
“That’s kind of our culture,” Irons said. “I think it’s a fun style to play when everybody has an opportunity to do multiple things.”
Davis, who is heading to SIU-Carbondale, averages 14.5 points per game. After Davis, the Wolverines have eight players who average between 4.0 and 7.5 points per contest.
Equal distribution of scoring is the norm – until someone heats up.
During the state quarterfinal, senior Jayden Nicholson rattled off eight consecutive points early in the second quarter, junior guard Andre Aaron dropped in six straight to close the first half and sophomore Nicholas Randall scored six in a row to open the second half.
As a point guard, Hill prides himself in identifying who the offense should run through at any given time.
“I’ve always been a team player, and when guys are hot, my mentality is to keep feeding them the ball,” Hill said.
Irons realizes that poor shot selection and turnovers are bound to happen, but lapses in defensive intensity cannot.
“I don’t get on them too much for things that happen offensively. They’re all going to get shots, they’re all going to turn the ball over. They have to bring effort and defend, and they understand that,” Irons said.
Defensive effort travels well and has allowed Vashon to play a schedule filled with top teams from across the nation. The Wolverines opened their season with a 45-41 loss to Dallas Kimball, who just won its seventh Texas Class 5A state championship on Saturday.
Their schedule also included Utah Class 5A state champion Corner Canyon High, Illinois 4A state champion Moline High and New York Class AA state champion Archbishop Stepinac.
“We played a number of nationally-ranked teams and a number of nationally-ranked players, so when we get to this point, there’s nothing that our kids haven’t seen,” Irons said.
And Vashon will be in familiar territory on Thursday, playing in a semifinal round where they are 5-0 since 2016.
“Everyone is locked in and we’re all hungry to get another state title,” Hill said. “Some people on our team haven’t experienced it, and I would love for them to experience what I did last year. That feeling is unreal.”