Stevan Guerrero and fellow freshman Travis Pflughaupt have helped spark a Schreiner team that has been trying to build for several seasons. Schreiner athletics photo

As the van carrying the Schreiner men's basketball team rolled across a Texas highway on a Wednesday afternoon in early Februrary -- no luxury accommodations for this 315-mile trip to Sul Ross State -- coach Drew Miller was given an opportunity to reflect on how far his team has come in a short period of time.

Miller always believed he could get the program to this point, the point where games in the final two weeks of the season have something more than pride or a moral victory on the line. It was just going to take time to get there.

And while Schreiner hasn’t arrived as a marquee program in the American Southwest Conference, it isn't exactly a doormat either. The game on Thursday night was a must-win for the Mountaineers if they want to remain in contention for a spot in the conference tournament.

“It has definitely been a process,” Miller said. “We have focused on getting the right kind of kids in here, and all of our guys are high achievers, on the court and in the classroom. We have a young team but we have players who can play at a high level. The players we have in this program have made the difference.”

Having the right pieces to the puzzle always helps. So does attitude. After all, you don’t turn misery into magic by snapping your fingers.

Schreiner was 5-19 overall and 5-16 in the conference during the 2007-08 season, Miller’s first at the helm. The Mountaineers went 6-19 overall a year later while going 6-15 in the conference. It didn’t get much better a year later as the Mountaineers finished 5-20 overall and 5-15 in the ASC.

Last season, Schreiner won 10 games and lost 15. It finished 8-13 in the conference.

The story is different this time around.

The Mountaineers have taken a huge step forward. With four games to go, Schreiner is 12-9 overall and 10-7 in the conference. It is in fifth place in the rugged West Division and needs to move into fourth to make the ASC tournament.

“When I first got here, we were just trying to win games. Now, we expect to win,” Miller said. “It’s not easy changing the culture of a team, but we have been able to do it here. We don’t feel inferior to any opponent and we are not satisfied with what we have done so far.”

Sure does beat the way it was when Miller first arrived on campus after serving as an assistant for three seasons at nearby Trinity. Success was a given there. Trinity won 61 games in those three years and made two trips to the NCAA tournament.

“Everything came so easy at Trinity,” Miller said. “My first couple of years here were very long years. It was tough. But we stuck with it and we have seen the results of working hard.”

Schreiner had won its last two games heading into its showdown against Sul Ross State, an opponent it defeated 88-74 at home on Jan. 19.

Balance has been the key to its success. Freshman center Travis Pflughaupt is leading the team in scoring at 18 points per game. Sophomore guard Darren Smith, the reigning player of the week in the West Division, is clicking for 17.3 points per outing while sophomore guard AJ Myres is pumping in 15.4 ppg.

Three other players, senior guard Tyrie Prince (7.6), sophomore forward Ethan Catalini (7.3) and freshman guard Stevan Guerrero (5.3), have been steady contributors as well for the Mountaineers. Schreiner is averaging 78.4 points per outing and giving up 77.4. One of the keys to its success on defense has been its ability to steal the ball. The Mountaineers average 10.1 steals per game. Pflughaput (41), Smith (34) and Prince (30) have paved the way on the defensive end of the floor.

“Our team has really grown up a lot this season because of the experience they have gained,” Miller said. “They have earned confidence by winning and the exciting part of this is that we are still very young. It’s been fun to watch this team mature over the course of the season.”

Miller is confident this team can handle the rigors of this final four-game stretch of the regular season, which includes three games on the road. The toughest test on the trip is a road game against No. 8 Mary Hardin-Baylor on Feb. 16.

But it does no good for the Mountaineers to look ahead.

“We have to worry about the team we are playing, and our guys understand that. We understand what our position is right now and what we need to do to get into the (ASC) tournament,” Miller said. “Our players know that when we are focused and we play hard, we can beat anyone on our schedule. But when we lack effort, we are a very beatable team.”

Miller can’t look into a crystal ball to see how the rest of this season will play out. What he does know is that this team has laid a foundation for future success at Schreiner, which is something the Mountaineers used to only dream about.

“This team has accomplished things that no other team ever has at this school. That is special,” Miller said. “I’ve had a lot of fun coaching this team and I know we have a lot of potential. We are going to do everything we can to get into the conference tournament, but at the same time, we want to make sure we enjoy this ride. It’s been fun so far.”

And it appears that perhaps the best is yet to come for the Mountaineers.

Noteworthy

Sophomore guard Ali Ross picked an ideal time to take her game to another level. The DePauw women’s basketball star averaged 13.7 points, 3.0 assists and 2.7 steals per game in three games as she helped the Tigers clinch the North Coast Athletic Conference championship. She also drilled seven treys during the stretch.

The Tigers, ranked fourth in the country, secured the championship in an 85-43 win over Hiram on Saturday. Ross poured in 18 points in the victory and also dished out three assists.

DePauw has won 19 consecutive games and is 20-1 overall. It is 13-0 in the NCAC. Ross is the second-leading scorer on the team at 10.8 points per outing. DePauw is averaging 70.4 ppg and is giving up just 46.6 as its defense has been a vital part to its run of success. Opponents are shooting just 35.4 percent from the field against the Tigers, who haven’t lost since a 52-47 setback to Franklin on Nov. 19.

Claunch loves to share

Austin Claunch of the No. 23 Emory men’s basketball team has a knack for sharing the basketball. In an 83-67 win over the University of Chicago on Friday, the senior dished out 13 assists, which set a school record. The old record was 12, which Claunch had hit himself on several occasions.

On top of the record, Claunch dropped in 19 points, grabbed seven rebounds and tallied three steals.

Emory improved to 16-3 overall and to 5-3 in the University Athletic Association. Claunch has 145 assists on the season and is averaging 18.7 points per outing. He has nailed 36 3-pointers as well.

Emory did lose its next game, falling 92-83 to Washington University on Sunday, and has lost three of its last four. The Eagles still have five games to play, though, and will need a strong finish to remain in NCAA tourney contention.

Royals move up

Eastern Mennonite’s women’s basketball team has one of the top offenses in the nation, but against Roanoke, the Royals had to find another way to win.

They did. Held 30 points below their season average, they still came away with a 45-44 win over the Maroons to take back control of first place in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Eastern Mennonite, which is averaging 73.6 ppg, is 18-2 overall and 14-2 in the conference.

Stephanie Rheinheimer was the hero in the thrilling encounter, drilling a jumper with 12 seconds to play to push the Royals into the lead. Eastern Mennonite trailed by seven at one point in the first half and was down by six late in the second half before fighting back to earn the important win.

Rheinheimer, who is averaging 11.4 points per outing, finished the day with 14 while Laurel Hankins pumped in 13 points. The Royals shot just 30.4 percent from the floor but did their part on defense by limiting the Maroons to 30.9 percent shooting.

Fighting Scots don’t give up

Wooster could have folded when it trailed Ohio Wesleyan on the road Wednesday night. The Fighting Scots, ranked No. 13 in the country, were down 15 points in the first half.

But they were unfazed by the 30-15 deficit they faced late in the first half, chipping away at it until taking their first lead with a little over three minutes to go. The Fighting Scots would go on to win the game, putting their defensive effort on display in a 54-40 win.

Wooster was in the Final Four a year ago, advancing to the national championship game, so it knows a thing or two about playing under pressure. With the win, the Fighting Scots are now in a position to move into a tie for first place in the North Coast Athletic Conference if they can defeat rival Wittenberg on Saturday. Wittenberg is ranked No. 22 in the country.

Justin Hallowell played a pivotal role in the win. The senior forward scored 14 points and pulled down 15 rebounds for Wooster, which is now 19-3 overall and 10-3 in the league. Hallowell is averaging 11.9 points and 6.2 rebounds per game this season.

Quick hits

Christian Ford rose to the occasion for the Maryville men’s basketball team in its 99-88 Great South Athletic Conference win over Huntingdon on Saturday. Ford didn’t look like a freshman as he scored 22 points. Teammate Wesley Lambert added 21 points as Maryville improved to 13-8 overall and to 4-2 in the conference…John Ross won his 200th game as the head coach of the Calvin women’s basketball team on Wednesday night as the Knights blasted Kalamazoo 72-38 in a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association win. Ross is 200-47 in nine years as the head coach of Calvin, which is ranked fifth in the nation and sitting in first place in the conference with a 13-1 MIAA mark. ... The Thiel men’s basketball team kept its hopes alive for a Presidents’ Athletic Conference championship by knocking off Geneva 78-75 on Wednesday. The Tomcats had to overcome a 13-point deficit to earn the win. Anthony Harvey scored 16 points, including 14 from the free-throw line, the most made free throws in a game since Joe Herrmann hit 13 in 2007. ... Camry Green of the Christopher Newport women’s basketball team was named the USA South Rookie of the Week on Monday. Green helped the Captains go 2-1 last week as she averaged a double-double, tallying 13.3 points and 12.7 rebounds per game. She highlighted her week with 13 points, 13 rebounds, two assists and two blocks in an 84-75 win over North Carolina Wesleyan.

 Feel free to contact me about a story idea or share your thoughts on Division III college basketball. I enjoy interacting with the fans. You can reach me by email at brian.lester@d3sports.com or follow me on Twitter @Blester1993.