STANFORD -- The pale blue wristbands read: Band of Brothers, Seniors 2009. The bond is strong among the eight seniors on Olympia High School 's basketball team, particularly starters Brady Cremeens, Matt Frahm, Trevor Strubhar and Matt Flynn.

So strong, third-year coach Gerry Thornton said they sometimes fight like brothers, but they get over it real quick. And so strong, that in-game parental advice is interchangeable.

If somebody yells at us from the stands, we 're not even sure whose mom it is, Cremeens said. I don 't have a problem if somebody else 's mom yells at me.

It is all part of a unique mix that has propelled Olympia to its best season in years. The Spartans enter the Clinton Class 2A Regional this week as Corn Belt Conference champions for the first time since 1994. They also have a 23-4 record, one win shy of the school record set in 1985-86 (24-5).

With Frahm, Strubhar and Cremeens in their third seasons as starters and Flynn in his second, a lot was expected after reaching the super-sectional last year. So far, the No. 10 state-ranked Spartans have delivered.

This is the season we 've been looking forward to for a long time, Frahm said. We just tried to make sure we had no regrets throughout the season. We 've had a few slip-ups, but I don 't think any of us would say we regret anything. It 's the best time of our lives right now.

Naturally, they hope to extend it. The state tournament is the ultimate goal, but Thornton was quick to point out, There are lot of good teams between us and Peoria.

Perhaps the best news for Thornton is he doesn 't have to push and prod. The players do that to each other.

Guys aren 't afraid to hold other guys accountable, Frahm said. We push each other because we 're really competitive.

That fire is not limited to basketball. All five starters were members of Olympia 's state championship baseball team last spring.

The fifth starter is junior point guard Spencer Pratt, last year 's sixth man who moved up with the graduation of standout center Colt Stroud.

The loss of Stroud meant each returning starter moved to a new position, most notably the 6-foot-3 Strubhar from forward to center and Flynn from the point to the two-guard spot. Thornton also switched to Illinois State 's ball-screen offense.

It has produced a balanced attack led by the 6-6 Frahm 's 18.1 scoring average and Cremeens ' 16.0 mark. Frahm, who is less than 50 points from Olympia 's career scoring record, also averages 7.6 rebounds and Strubhar is at 6.9.

Thornton also has emphasized defense. The past two years, he zeroed in on the Spartans ' offensive skills. This year, he said, we felt the focus had to be defense.

We 're not a great defensive team, but we 've made strides, he said.

The result has been a 14-1 record over the past 15 games. Included was a 70-59 victory Tuesday over No. 4-ranked Peoria Christian, avenging a 22-point loss in December.

Looming in the postseason is a possible fourth game against Corn Belt rival Central Catholic. The Saints, who have lost three times to Olympia, are seeded second and the Spartans first in the regional.

Our confidence is pretty high, but we all know that with the record we have, people are going to have nothing to lose and play hard against us, Strubhar said. We need to match their intensity.

Flynn said experiencing last year 's postseason run is a plus, along with the Band of Brothers mentality.

In the tough games, it really helps that you have people next to you that you can trust, he said. We get on each other if we mess up or for not hustling. But nobody takes it personally. That 's big.