By ROB TATE ~ DAR Sports Writer

PIEDMONT -- For the Clearwater Tigers, now might be the best time to step up for a team that returns a group that has had success at all levels of play with the exception of at the big time -- the varsity level.

The Tigers have just four seniors on this year's team, but experience runs deep in a junior class that has played well together in previous seasons. With every player back together again for the first time since eighth grade, the Tigers can make some serious noise in the Ozark Foothills Conference.

Some area coaches have pointed to Clearwater as a serious threat and a team to watch out for, but Clearwater coach Louis Bell, who is entering his seventh season in charge, won't buy into it until he sees results on the court.

"We haven't done it at the varsity level, so I think we have to prove ourselves first," Bell said.

The junior class on this year's team has been very successful and the question still remains if they can do it at a higher level.

According to Bell, in the current junior class' seventh grade year they went undefeated. As eighth graders they dropped a couple close games and at the junior varsity level they won both the OFC and the Black River League tournaments.

After a disappointing start to last season, Bell brought up seven sophomores and they boosted Clearwater's record up to 10-15 after a 1-8 start.

"We didn't win a game until after Christmas," Bell said. "We had a couple player issues and things just didn't start well."

The Tigers dropped their first eight games and some of it was due to discipline problems and missing players. Current senior Kyle Randolph and junior Ethan Scott each missed valuable practice time at the start of last year. After they got healthy and Bell moved some players up, Clearwater rounded out the year with a 9-6 run before losing to Doniphan in the district semifinal.

"After Christmas, we moved up seven sophomores," Bell said. "Not only did they have some skill, but they enjoyed playing basketball with each other. They liked each other and there wasn't any jealousy. And that's big, just the team concept of it."

Junior Luke Hillis agreed about the importance of the team being cohesive and getting along.

"This is the first year we've all been together since eighth grade," Hillis said. "Everybody feels good about being back together and we fell like we're back on the road again. Outside of it all we're all best friends."

Along with Randolph at the guard spot, Bell returns Hillis who was an all-conference selection last season. Hillis averaged nearly 16 points per game in the second half of the year. Combine that with the post play of 6-foot-6 Ethan Scott and opponents will have their hands full.

"Luke and Kyle were my two most consistent last year and could do it every night," Bell said. "Ethan Scott is 6-6 and has a lot of skill and will be hard to stop."

Randolph agrees that the team looks good based on the past but they can't rely on history.

"We've got a lot of young guys, I think we're really deep," Randolph said. "That's the biggest thing. Like our coaches say, we haven't proved nothing and we gotta keep coming to work hard. We've gotta prove something and that's the big thing."

Hillis felt that as long as the shooters and are on and their opponents have to make adjustments with Scott clogging up the middle, they have a chance to win any game.

"If they try to double team Ethan they'll (other teams) be hurting because that leaves one of us open most of the time we'll be able to knock it down," Hillis said.

With a good amount of size (six players are above 6-feet tall), the Tigers could be very competitive in conference play and in districts.

"(Doniphan) has just been so good for so many years," Bell said. "The last few years they've had a lot of players and they've graduated good players every year."

Even though Clearwater has received some early season confidence, Randolph knows there are still some hurdles to jump, especially Doniphan, which reached sectionals last year before bowing out to New Madrid County Central.

"Doniphan just has that mentality that they're always gonna be good," Randolph said. "You still can't count them out. They got some good guys returning from their district championship team and they'll have some experience."

Bell felt that top five teams in the OFC were Doniphan, Twin Rivers, Naylor, Neelyville and Clearwater coming into the year. He said that each could do major damage on any particular night.

"Any of those five can beat each other on a given night," Bell said. "I don't think there's anybody head and shoulders above anyone else."

But in the grand scheme of things, Clearwater as a team can only control itself.

"We've got four or five guys that we feel can score for us in the type of game we're playing," Bell added. "I think we'll have a different guy lead in scoring every night."