As he turned to address his basketball team during a timeout in the waning moments of the title game at Lee's Summit High School's Culver's Classic boys basketball tournament, Brad Oestreich beheld a coach's desire.
Raytown South (Mo.) point guard
Corey Hilliard was already in front of his teammates firing them up and giving instruction.
Raytown South's Corey Hilliard.
Photo by Dean Backes
"He was telling the guys to take care of the ball," Oestreich recalled of his final timeout during the Cardinals' 52-47 win over Lee's Summit North. "'Be strong,' he told them. ‘We have to make our free throws.' Sometimes it can take a while to say what you want to say, but he had already said it.
"We're not out on that floor. They're in the game, so when one of my guys does that … that's huge."
For Hilliard, Saturday's setting was not a solitary episode. His high school career is chock-full of team-first experiences. Sure, it'd be easy for the 6-foot-1-inch, 180-pounder to rifle shot after shot and put up big numbers. But it just wouldn't be good for the whole of the team.
And Hilliard, who is 52-22 as a starter, just wants to win.
"I don't really bother about that," Hilliard replied when asked about the temptations to go on scoring binges. "I've had plenty of games where I had zero points. It's about winning more than it is about the individual. I want to go out there every night and play harder than the other team.
"I'm a competitor. I want to be the best. I had to work hard to earn this spot. I have a competitive fire and I want to beat anybody that we play. It keeps me hungry and working hard."
Hilliard earned his first start as a sophomore, scoring 10.8 points and dishing out close to three assists per game. A year ago, he improved slightly to just more than 13 points a game. Through 19 games this season, 10 of which he has played in, Hilliard is averaging 17.2 points per outing.
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