The Oakville Tigers boys basketball squad got back to work after five days with no games.

The Tigers earned a 62-55 win over Seckman Feb. 20.

“It was good to get back into games,” Oakville head coach Nicholas Traxler said. “I really feel like our young group is starting to gain chemistry, and that will certainly help as we move into district play and begin preparations for next season.”

The Tigers had three players score double digits in the win. Andrew Eckhard led the way with 15 points, Logan Scholz followed with 11 points and Pierce Bauman added 10 points.

“Eckhard and Scholz have been extremely consistent all season,” Traxler said. “Both can score at all three levels, and when they are going, it opens up opportunities for others when they draw the extra attention.”

Traxler was also complimentary of Bauman.

“Pierce really stepped up tonight,” he said. “We inserted him into the starting lineup to defend No. 10 (Colin) Debold with his length, and not only did he hold Colin under his season average, he also gave us 10 points of offense. I am super excited for him.”

DJ McDonald and Tanner Anderson also each added seven points for OHS.

Traxler admitted he was concerned about his team being ready to play with a five-day layoff.

“It is a concern, but this time of year, I think the boys would rather play a one and half hour game than have a two hour practice,” he said. “The practices for them, when we do it right, are often tougher than games. As a coach, there is obviously more stress in games, but we are at the point in the season that we kind of know what we know, and we just have to get on the floor and execute.”

One area that Traxler admitted the team needs to continue to work on is free throws. The Tigers went 17-for-28 from the line against Seckman.

“That was concerning to our staff,” he said. “We have been over 73% as a team on the year from the line, and we were not happy with that many misses. That said, getting to the line 28 times in an away game speaks to how aggressive I thought we played, and that will serve us well moving forward, hopefully.”

One notable thing about the game last night was that Traxler reunited with one of his longtime assistants, Aaron Carroll, who is in his first season as Seckman’s head coach. Carroll was on the Oakville staff for six years.

“I am proud of Aaron Carroll, first-year Seckman varsity coach, and think he has done an outstanding job with that program,” Traxler said. “I know they will be doing great things moving forward. I am super excited for him and this Jaguars group.”

Oakville, then 7-15 on the season after the win against Seckman, traveled to Rockwood Summit on Feb. 21, where they lost 61-48. The Tigers then hosted Pattonville on Feb 22.