By Kevin Johnson, junior

On a successful team, one of the biggest factors comes down to one word: chemistry.

The Falcon men’s basketball team started the season on a rough note.  After playing some tough opponents including the No. 1 team in the nation, Oklahoma Wesleyan, Friends was 1-5 after the first six games.

This is where chemistry comes in.  Is your team going to fold when the going gets tough?  Friends proved to have more than enough and made a comeback.

“Everyone wants the other to do their best. In practice we get after each other because we know it will get us better,” junior Nick O’Nelio said.

This approach seems to work best for the Falcons. Coach Dale Faber’s team got a much needed home victory against Bacone College, and that got them rolling. From that point, the Falcons won 14 of their next 15 games, which also meant a 9-0 start in conference.

Friends’ streak ended Saturday in a single point heartbreaker at the hands of Bethany College.

O’Nelio partly attributes the successful conference start to their approach entering games.

“Coach Faber tells us after each game that it’s about taking the next step, and being on top in the conference, you are going to get everyone's best shot every night out,” O’Nelio said.

The junior has played a big role on the team thus far. When down 14 points to McPherson, Friends made a rally that was capped by a game-tying O’Nelio 3-pointer. The shot was arguably his defining moment of the year. The Falcons gained momentum for the rest of the game and ultimately the year.

“The rush I got from the crowd after that shot was one of the best feelings, and we were very happy to have a lot of support that game so we could use the crowd to our advantage,” he said.

Going into the McPherson game, there was more at stake than usual; both teams were 6-0 and trying for an outright first place lead in the KCAC.  After O’Nelio’s shot, the energy in the Garvey Center had everyone on their feet.  That energy carried O’Nelio and the Falcons throughout the game and Friends took a 75-70 victory and first place advantage in conference.

Faber’s team will have to pull together during the final stretch of conference play and keep its chemistry intact to set up a classic championship-game setting with a rematch at McPherson on Feb. 13. McPherson is one game behind Friends after McPherson dropped a second conference game to Kansas Wesleyan on Saturday.

The Falcons travel to Winfield tonight to take on Southwestern, which sits in third place in the KCAC with a conference record of 6-4. The Falcons are 9-1 in conference play and 14-6 overall.