There were some doubters about the Homewood-Flossmoor High School boys basketball team coming into this season.
The Vikings graduated most of the contributors to last year’s Class 4A state title team. Bryce Heard, a blue chip recruit, forewent his senior season to instead head to North Carolina State a year early. Talented transfers were brought in, but the preseason rankings weren’t what one might expect for a returning champ.
The doubters are difficult to find now. Senior point guard Ethan Howard letting the rest of the state know what kind of player he can be has something to do with that.
“There was a lot of talk about ‘What is H-F going to be next year now that these are the only returning players?’” Howard said. “I just wanted to prove that Gianni (Cobb), Carson (Brownfield) and them had other pieces out here. I put in the work.”
H-F is 23-2 (12-0 SouthWest Suburban Conference), as of Feb. 6, and ranked No. 2 in the most recent AP Class 4A state poll. The Vikings picked up a 62-61 win over DePaul Prep on Jan. 25. The Rams were ranked No. 1 in Class 3A at the time.
The Vikings are on a 10-game winning streak, without a loss since 2024. Those 10 victories came by an average margin of 24.4 points.
Howard’s part in that is obvious.
He exploded for his first-ever triple double in the Vikings’ 83-67 SouthWest Suburban Conference win over Lincoln-Way Central Feb. 4. Not only did he grab 10 rebounds and dish 11 assists, he led the game with 31 points.
“It was one of the best performances in high school that I’ve seen in a long time,” coach Jamere Dismukes said. “It’s cool to get a triple double but when you do it and you add 31 points on top of that, that’s big time.”
It was one of those nights, Howard said. He could feel the ball coming off his hand well even during warm ups. He made 13 of his 15 attempts.
Howard isn’t counted on to score every night, but he can when he’s needed. His previous high scoring mark was 17 points in the season opener against St. Francis de Sales.
“Last year, of course I was locked into the game but now I have a much bigger role,” he said. “I’m the point guard. I’ve got to make everything straight so we could win.”
He also leads the team with 3.6 assists per game while committing only 1.4 turnovers. He is H-F’s best shooter among rotation players at 51% overall and 35% from behind the 3-point line, as of Feb. 6.
Some of that comes from his work in the weight room. Howard is noticeably bigger this season. He says he added about 25 pounds to his frame.
“Now, I’m able to bump guys and finish,” he said. “With my shot, I could have did some things (last year) but right now I’m on a whole different level.”
Howard is one of only a few players who return from the Vikings’ state-championship run. He said he tries to be more of a leader, along with players like Aiden Derose, Kyle Polk and JD Tyler.
“(The returning players) know our standard. They know our culture. They know what we’ve been preaching for the past three years,” Dismukes said. “They’re doing a great job as captains and leaders to get everybody else to learn that, as well.”
The only blemishes on this H-F season remain an overtime loss to Class 3A No. 5 St. Laurence and a disappointing loss to Rich Township in the Big Dipper final.
Howard says this group is more talented than last year’s, if maybe a little less competitive, so a state title is still the goal.
“Anybody in front of us, we know we can beat. We practice hard every day of the week,” he said. “With our confidence and how we practice, we go in to win every time.”
