However, the most important number for O’Connor is the win column.
“More than anything, I just want to win,” he said. “I just want to make my teammates better to lift our team up.”
The Arrows (7-7, 3-2 CBC Kenton Trail) have won four in a row, including a 60-51 victory over Urbana on Jan. 26. They travel to unbeaten Jonathan Alder (12-0, 6-0) on Tuesday night.
“The kids have played well,” said Arrows coach Roger Culbertson. “We’ve been finding ways to win. It’s sort of been an issue getting over the hump with our seniors since they’ve been here, we’ve never had a very good season. We’ve had some wins slip through our hands for sure, but it’s been a learning curve with knowing how to win, finding ways to win. Hopefully, we’re figuring that out a little bit.”
O’Connor was the team’s second-leading scorer last season as a freshman and worked hard at improving his game in the offseason, Culbertson said. O’Connor also plays high level competition in the summer, he said.
“He’s got really good handles,” Culbertson said. “He’s worked hard on his game. He shoots the ball well. When you put those things together, he’s really able to make some plays for us. He’s definitely done that.”
O’Connor is the son of former Division I assistant coach Wade O’Connor, who served under several prominent college coaches, including Billy Donovan, Oliver Purnell and Larry Hunter.
“He trains me a lot so that helps my game a lot, not just physically, but mentally as well,” O’Connor said.
O’Connor and his father spend a lot of time breaking down film, he said.
“Each and every game, he’s telling me what to do better,” O’Connor said. “It helps make me be a better player overall.”
O’Connor has scored in double-digits every game this season, including a career-high 27 points against Indian Lake.
“He’s a great kid all the way around,” Culbertson said. “He works hard in school and takes care of his grades. He’s a great kid to coach for sure. He does things right.”
The Arrows have held the lead in the second half in several close games earlier this season, but weren’t able to pull them out. Those tough losses have helped the Arrows pull out victories during the current winning streak.
“We’ve come together and we’re working as a team,” O’Connor said. “We’re practicing hard. We’ve lost a lot of close games and I think we’re learning from those games.”
The key moving forward will be sustaining their energy for the entire game, he said.
“We’ve got to play complete games,” O’Connor said. “Play hard, play together and play smart.”
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