LEWISBURG–Aiden Eby does not always see the court come game night. But one better believe he helps his team improve every day.

One need only listen to his teammates and Lewisburg fans react every time the senior made a play Wednesday against Loyalsock for validation. He made several plays, but the biggest ovation came when Eby converted a fourth quarter 3-point play.

Call it the cherry on top for a hard-working team leader and fellow seniors Cooper Mowry, Rebira Jemana and Nazir Meredith. They and all their teammates played well on Senior Night and Lewisburg won its 11th straight game, defeating Loyalsock, 66-37.

“I’ve grown up with Cooper and Nazir and Rebira. We’ve all played together since at least eighth grade,” Eby said after scoring three points, grabbing three boards and adding an assist. “We’ve stuck through it all together over these years. It’s been great being able to go through it all with them.”

Mowry scored a game-high 23 points, draining four of his six 3-pointers in the third quarter. Jemana (12 points, 10 rebounds) produced a double-double and Meredith generated 12 points, five rebounds and three assists as Lewisburg (16-4) never trailed.

Eby set the early tone, finding Meredith inside for the game’s initial basket and adding two rebounds in the first minute. Those plays whipped the crowd into a frenzy, but he saved the best for last. Cortland Michaels dealt the final of his seven assists Eby’s way. The senior converted inside while being fouled and drained the ensuing free throw.

Each basket made it feel like a rock concert was taking place inside the gym. And after making the foul shot, the student section chanted Eby’s name repeatedly, giving the senior a Bruce Springsteen-type moment he will never forget.

“It was definitely nice being able to soak in the moment there at the end, especially getting the win,” Eby said. “It’s been great being able to celebrate with family and friends.”

“Aiden is a great kid. He comes in every and puts the hard work in and doesn’t complain. He’s here for the overall team’s success,” Lewisburg coach Leon Tucker said. “Those seniors have been through some trying times, so to have the success we’re having this year and to have a moment for him like that on Senior Night is pretty awesome. That was pretty special to see.”

Lewisburg is doing its best to make this a special season, capturing the HAC-II championship a week ago. It has been an impressive run for the seniors who were part of a team which won six regular-season games two seasons ago before heating up in the postseason and reaching states. The Dragons made a five-win improvement last year and now are the program’s first outright league champions in 15 years.

How Lewisburg has made it happen was on display again Wednesday. The Dragons played smothering defense, efficiently moved the basketball and displayed a super inside-outside game. They piled up 19 assists on 27 field goals, and four starters dealt three or more.

Loyalsock (13-8) hung tough for a quarter, but Lewisburg put it all together in the second, starting a 24-2 run which extended deep into the third. Meredith and Jemana took control inside early and that set up Mowry who went off in the third quarter as Lewisburg landed an early knockout blow.

“When we have a presence like Nazir and Rebira who can get every rebound everywhere, it spaces the floor for LJ (Tucker) and Cooper,” Eby said. “That makes the defenses have to change and as soon as they change to them, then Nazir and Rebira start doing their thing again.”

On cue, Meredith and Jemana did damage inside in the fourth quarter following Mowry’s third-quarter eruption. The senior guard has fully healed from early-season injuries and continued heating up, going 8 of 12 from the field. So locked in was Mowry in the third quarter that none of his four straight 3-pointers hit anything but net.

“When Cooper’s feeling it and has that look, run plays for him. If he’s open and he has a look, it’s going down,” Tucker said. “The guys did a good job getting us started and once he got one or two in, that hoop starts looking like an ocean to him.”

If it looked like an ocean to Mowry. the basket might have looked like a golf hole to Loyalsock in the middle quarters. During that 24-2 run, the Lancers did not make a field goal. A Bradyon Cioffi 3-pointer with two minutes remaining in the third quarter ended a 12-minute drought and Loyalsock went 3 of 21 from the field while being outscored 35-11 in those two quarters.

But the offensive woes were a product of defensive struggles which have plagued Loyalsock down the stretch. The Lancers, led by Saoj Jones’s eight points and Isaac Blackwell’s four steals, faced a tall order against a balanced team but it was the effort which upset coaches more than anything.

“They’re a very good team. They can hit you from many different angles, but we had a game plan,” Loyalsock coach Ryan Cioffi said. “When you don’t give max energy and you try and execute that game plan, it doesn’t work. We are not giving max energy, so we have to figure it out as coaches and as players or it’s going to be a very short postseason for us.”

Loyalsock likely will be the No. 6 seed in the District 4 Class AAA playoffs and head to either Towanda or Southern Columbia. It faces another strong opponent in its regular-season finale, heading to the Magic Dome Saturday and playing Williamsport. This is a team which has won seven more games than it did a year ago, so it has shown what it can do.

Now, the Lancers are hoping to go back their roots and surge at the perfect time.

“We’re not functioning well. When we’re at our best, we are playing really good defense,” Cioffi said. “Right from the beginning, our philosophy was play hard on defense and let it fly on offense. If you’re not playing really hard on defense, then the shots don’t come in sync, and everything snowballs from not giving max effort on defense.”

The defense Loyalsock wants is the kind Lewisburg played Wednesday. The Dragons man-to-man pressure forced Loyalsock into long possessions where quality looks were hard to come by. The lane was mostly cut off and rarely did Lewisburg allow clean perimeter shots.

Lewisburg has shown it can heat up quickly on offense. The foundation for its success, however, starts on defense.

“They understand that defense is what’s going to win us games. They’ve bought into that and that’s why they work so hard on that end of the floor,” Tucker said. “They believe in what we’re doing; they believe that defense is what makes it better for us.”

Eby played a large role in that defensive effort. The effort he displays every day at practice translated well to the court and that energy was a big part of Lewisburg opening the game on a 7-0 run.

Eby finished just as strong. His 3-point play capped the scoring and elicited the game’s most thunderous applause. Athletes search for moments like these and Eby will own this one forever.

“It was nice getting a chance out there. I don’t normally get the most minutes out there, so I try and make it count when I do get the chance,” Eby said. “It was really cool, all the people cheering for me. It’s something I’ll remember.”

LOYALSOCK (37)

Braydon Cioffi 2 0-0 6, Brecken Gusick 3 0-0 6, Jalil Coates 0 4-4 4, Saoj Jones 3 2-2 8, Isaac Blackwell 3 0-0 7, Ronnie Emery 2 0-0 6. Totals 13 6-6 37.

LEWISBURG (66)

LJ Tucker 2 1-1 5, Cooper Mowry 8 1-2 23, Nazir Meredith 6 0-2 12, Cortland Michaels 3 0-0 7, Rebira Jemana 6 0-0 12, Jaylen Walker 1 2-4 4, Aiden Eby 1 1-1 3. Totals 27 5-10 66.

Loyalsock 12 4 7 14–37

Lewisburg 17 19 16 14–66

3-pointers: Loyalsock 5 (Cioffi 2, Emery 2, Blackwell); Lewisburg 7 (Mowry 6, Michaels).

Records: Lewisburg 16-4. Loyalsock 13-8.