After taking fourth place at the Collinsville (Ill.) Holiday Invitational, the Oakville Senior High School boys’ basketball team continues to focus on its goal of winning the Class 5, District 7 championship.

“We’re halfway through the season and we’re still figuring out what everyone’s roles are,” Oakville head coach Nick Traxler said. “But I’m happy because we’re making progress, which is good.”

The Tigers (8-4, 1-1 Suburban West) were the first team from Missouri to reach the semifinal game of the Collinsville Invitational, according to Traxler.

Oakville defeated Mount Zion (Ill.) in the first round 63-53 and Springfield Southeast (Ill.) in the quarterfinal 63-61. But a 9-3 run in overtime by Lincoln (Ill.) in the semifinals caused the Tigers to come up short in a 56-50 loss. The Tigers also lost to Walton, (Ga.) 98-81 in the third-place game.

On Jan. 8, the Tigers defeated Marquette at home 52-38 for their first win in Suburban West Conference play.

“That was our third game in three days, so we were worried about the boys’ legs,” Traxler said. “Keith Pickens tweaked his ankle Wednesday night (Jan. 7) in the Summit game, so we rested him for most of the second half of that game as well as most of the Marquette game. We expect him to return this week.”

Oakville’s Javier Duren and Josh Noblitt led the Tigers with 14 points each.

Duren added to his 14-point performance with four steals and four assists. The sophomore guard is averaging 10.3 points and 3.66 assists per game.

“Every day he’s getting better and stronger,” Traxler said. “One of the good things that he’s been doing is that he’s looking to get other players involved and has really been a leader on defense.”

Noblitt also recorded one steal, two assists and three rebounds. The senior guard is averaging 11.7 points and 2.7 rebounds per game.

The Tigers return to action at 7 p.m. today — Jan. 15 — when they play host to Riverview Gardens. Oakville then travels to Lindbergh for a 7 p.m. Friday meeting with the Flyers.

Riverview Gardens (7-6, 1-0 Suburban North) is on a three-game winning streak that includes a 70-51 win at home against Hazelwood East Saturday afternoon.

“Riverview is a well-coached team from North St. Louis County and we know that in order to prepare for districts and beyond that, you’ve got to play teams like them,” Traxler said. “They’re not that big inside, which should help us.”

Lindbergh (0-9, 0-3 Suburban West) has struggled since the start of the season. The Flyers dropped a 69-52 decision at Park-way South Friday night as Jamie Limar led Lindbergh with 17 points.

“Coach (Jason) Wolfard is always going to have his boys ready to play,” Traxler said. “We’re going to have to play well in order to beat well-prepared teams like Lindbergh.”