LEBANON — In his first season as boys basketball coach at Lebanon High School, Matt Higgins is seeking small victories.

The Warriors return six players from last year’s squad that finished 6-15 and last in the Greater Western Ohio Conference South Division.

No one on the roster is taller than 6-foot-3, but Higgins hopes that athleticism and hustle will make up for the team’s lack of size.

“This is an exciting time, an exciting opportunity but honestly, we’ve got to keep things in perspective and be sensible,” Higgins said.

“We lost 70 percent of our scoring and 60 percent of our rebounding from last year. So let’s start with a goal of improving on what we did last year and if we get on a roll, then great.

“We’ll probably be the underdog in almost every game we play, but we’re fine with that. We like sneaking up on people. I know this much, we’ll be fun to watch.”

Juniors Ben Esposito (6.7 points per game) and Zach Beckner (5.1) are the team’s top returning scorers.

Esposito, a 6-2 forward, made 61.2 percent of his shots last year, which ranked fourth in the GWOC, and was Lebanon’s top rebounder a year ago at 5.2 boards per game. He’ll be joined in the post by junior Luke Morgan, a 6-2, 200-pound forward who played in 18 games as a sophomore.

“We’re counting on those guys to score some points, grab some rebounds and run the court,” Higgins said.