In the quietest moments of the fall, Free State High boys basketball coach Chuck Law found himself wondering about the 2007-08 season.

He never imagined it would be anything like this.

“I thought this team would be pretty good in February,” Law said. “I didn’t have any idea it would be this good this early.”

It is. And Law and the Firebirds are enjoying the ride.

After opening the season with a 1-1 mark, including a disappointing loss to Class 5A Shawnee Heights in the first round of the Bonner Springs Metro Prep Classic in December, Free State has roared to six victories in seven games. The 7-2 start exceeds what many expected and has come largely because Law’s team has bought into his philosophy the way residents of northern Minnesota might buy into heat.

“‘Do your job,’ that’s sort of become our mantra,” Law said. “And right now our guys are doing their jobs.”

From the team’s stars throwing up eye-popping stats to its role players polishing their games, Law’s Firebirds quickly have become one of the area’s best-rounded teams. The reasons for the team’s success are many but revolve around three main components: leadership, all-out effort and unselfish play.

“Those are good,” Law said. “And the fourth one is role acceptance. The guys who are not asked to carry the load for this team have really bought into what they’ve been asked to do, and they’ve made us better by doing it. We are better at almost every position than I thought we would be. When you’re better at every position, you’re going to have a better team.”

All four elements already have led to several signature victories. A road win at Olathe South followed by a convincing victory in the city showdown highlighted the December portion of the Free State schedule. And last Friday’s road victory at Shawnee Mission East, in which the Firebirds outscored the Lancers 24-0 in the final quarter to win by 21, put a gold star on the early part of January.

“We always talk about trying to protect our home court,” Law said. “Because in order to compete in our league that’s something you absolutely have to do. With that in mind, if you can go on the road in this league and win games, it’s huge.”

Seniors Weston Wiebe, Kris Wilson and Craig Rosenstengle have become reliable performers who have led the team in every way. From scoring and rebounding to accountability and attitude, all three have exceeded Law’s hopes and expectations.

“Weston has emerged as a guy who can carry the team on his back,” Law said of his senior forward, who is averaging 19 points and nine rebounds per game. “I didn’t know if he could do that. Kris has emerged as the type of leader I didn’t know he could be, and Craig has played beyond how I thought he was capable of playing.”

Law’s praise doesn’t stop with those guys. He described Chase Hoag as a “high-energy guy,” and Sean Brown as a “defensive rock.” He also has appreciative words for key role players Marcus Spates, a defensive spark off the bench at guard, and Conner Monarez, a zone-busting shooter who starts.

Those players, in turn, deliver the kind of effort that makes Law believe they’re playing for a bigger purpose than themselves. The seniors got a taste of the big time last season as bit players on a team that finished third at state. They’re hungry to get back, and their teammates are eager to help them get there.

“I get a sense that our underclassmen have the attitude that they don’t want to let their senior teammates down,” Law said.

The same was true of Wiebe, Wilson and Rosenstengle a season ago, but it took until the final weeks of the season for the team’s leaders to emerge and the chemistry to follow. With this team, the impact of its leadership is obvious.

Last season, the Firebirds won just four Sunflower League games. They’re 3-0 in the league this year. Last year, Free State lost eight of the 10 games that came down to the final possession. This year, FSHS isn’t letting games get to that point.

“Maybe there’s a maturity in these guys, and they’re now better-equipped to hang in there and handle adversity,” Law said.

Rosenstengle, the team’s unquestioned vocal leader, believes that to be true.

“We just go out there every game and do what we need to do to shut the opponent down,” he said. “It’s all about getting in the right spots at the right time and doing our jobs.”

Despite obvious joy over his team’s hot start, Law will be the first to tell you that this team hasn’t accomplished anything yet.

“There’s no such thing as a guarantee in this environment,” he said. “All we can do is continue to challenge them, keep it fresh in practice and do our best not to allow our guys to be content nine games into a 20-game season.”

Considering the difficulty of the next three games on the docket, none of that should be tough to do. Beginning Thursday, Free State travels west to take part in the McPherson Invitational. The Firebirds’ first-round match up is a showdown with Blue Valley Northwest. The rest of the bracket is mined with similarly tough opponents.

“I think this is as strong as any tournament field in the state, perhaps even stronger than a state tournament,” Law said. “Instead of looking at this as a bum draw, we’re looking at it as a great opportunity to measure ourselves against some of the elite teams in Kansas.”