Approaching the midway point in the conference season, Blytheville sits atop the 5A-East boys standings with its toughest test to date scheduled for Friday night.
The Chicks (11-3, 5-0 5A-East), winners of eight straight games, travel to VYPE Class 5A No. 2 Forrest City.
The big, athletic Mustangs will challenge Blytheville, which is in sole possession of first at this point in the season for the first time since the 1990s.
Despite all the great Chickasaw teams of the 2000s, the last time Blytheville was 5-0 in league play was 1999, when the Chicks were tied for first with the Jonesboro Hurricane.
Ranked No. 2 at the time, Jonesboro handed the Chicks their first league loss in the next game.
In the 29-1, 2006 state championship campaign, Blytheville started 3-0 in conference play before suffering its lone of the year at Greene County Tech.
Blytheville head coach David Hixson has credited his players' hard work and unselfishness as the reasons for the early success this season.
"We're getting a little better every game," Hixson said recently. "Not that we've been perfect, but the kids have played extremely hard. The great thing about this bunch is, it's always somebody different. We're a hard team to scout because there's not one guy that you say you have to lock down and keep from scoring. We've got multiple kids that can score and have all year long. Our bench has been really good. We've been getting a lot of points and a lot of productivity out of our role players coming off the bench."
The veteran Chickasaw coach has been pleased with the way his players have practiced.
"If you practice well, you're hopefully going to perform and play well," he said earlier this week. "That's been the MO of this bunch...If we continue to improve, I think we've got a chance to be an outstanding basketball team."
mbrasfield@blythevillecourier.com