District Ready: Mules open with Hillsboro Thursday

The Poplar Bluff Mules basketball team plans to play as a unit heading into the postseason.

The No. 4 seeded Mules are gearing up to compete in the Class 5 District 1 Tournament on Thursday at North County High School. After a week of no competition, the Mules have made it a priority to stay inside the gym as they prepare for the postseason.

Senior guard Preston Moore said the Mules are feeling good heading into the district tournament, and the game plan going forward is to take one game at a time.

“Our game has really come together at the end of the regular season,” Moore said. “We’ve been locked in every day, and our practices have been really competitive, which makes us play better. We’ve had some tough games lately, but it definitely has prepared us for the playoffs. We’re not trying to look too far ahead, our plan is to take it day by day and be ready for our first matchup.”

Moore said the Mules will surely see some adversity along the way, but it’s important to properly react to it. He said the team has continued to play hard regardless of the score, and he hopes the same energy will continue throughout the postseason.

Last season, the Mules entered the playoffs on a three-game losing streak and were halted in the second round with a loss to Kirkwood High School. Fast forward to this season, the Mules closed out the regular season going 4-1, and finished with an overall record of 15-11. The Mules will take on the No. 5 seed Hillsboro Hawks (18-6), marking the first matchup between both schools. It’s been three years since the Mules won a district title, and fellow teammate and senior Mar’lon Hickman-Roberson said it’s all about wanting it more this year.

“We’ve shown a lot of improvement throughout the year,” Roberson said. “We’re the underdogs going into districts, and everybody is not expecting us to win. We believe we can beat any team and actually make a run in districts, so we just have to get our game together and compete. They’ve counted us out all season, but I got some hungry teammates, and I’m hungry myself, so we got to get it done.”

Roberson said head coach Will Durden preaches staying together and with being in a tough division, the Mules will need to flow as a unit.

“One thing coach Durden has stressed to us is playing with effort,” Roberson said. “I think everything is finally starting to come together for us. We’ve been meshing very well and I know I speak for everyone when I say I like the way we are playing.”