Seabury sophomore Zach McDermott (5) gets tripped up by Northern Heights' Tucker Litke, left, during their sub state playoff game Tuesday evening at Bishop Seabury Academy.

Bishop Seabury senior Thomas Uhler has seen the boys basketball program in the worst of times and the best of times.

During his freshman season, the Seahawks finished with a 1-17 record.

Fast forward three years and Seabury (18-3) is preparing for its second state tournament appearance in school history, meeting No. 2-seed Central Plains (23-0) at 6:30 p.m. Thursday in the first round of the 2A tournament at Kansas State’s Bramlage Coliseum.

“It’s awesome,” Uhler said. “I know at the end of this I’m going to be jealous because I know they are going to go do it again next year. But it’s great to get it on my senior year.”

Earning a spot at state was a moment that Uhler had long envisioned. In 2014, the Seahawks lost in the sub-state title game. That just made them hungrier for the next season. Then, they lost on a buzzer-beater in the sub-state semifinals last year.

After last season’s sub-state loss, Uhler grabbed a few of his teammates and told them they couldn’t focus on the future anymore. It was his senior year and they had to make it count.

With a large core of returners back, the stakes were raised. The Seahawks finally earned their state berth with sub-state victories against Northern Heights, Lyndon and Olpe.

“It makes it a lot tougher because it puts more pressure on you,” Seabury coach Ashley Battles said of the preseason expectations. “It’s definitely a sweet feeling when you get there.”

But there’s no easing into the state tournament. The undefeated Oilers were 2A state runners-up last season, losing by four points in the state title game to St. John, which had a 63-game winning streak until December.

“They are a helluva team, but I like our matchup,” Battles said. “We match up well against them.”

Seventh-seeded Seabury loves to play in transition with its top three guards: junior Mikey Wycoff and sophomores Zach McDermott and Bansi King. Wycoff averages a team-best 21 points per game, using his agility to dribble past defenders into the paint. McDermott adds 18 points and six assists per game, and the sharpshooting King averages 13 points.

After the team’s top three scorers, Uhler, junior Austin Gaumer, junior Max Easter, sophomore Thomas diZerega and freshman Chris Green are all big pieces into the team’s puzzle.

During sub-state, diZerega, a 5-foot-11 scrappy guard, probably had the most memorable week. Along with the team’s success on the court, diZerega missed the team’s first sub-state game to travel to New York and sing at Carnegie Hall.

His father, a vocal music teacher outside of Topeka, takes his choir every four years to sing at Carnegie Hall, and diZerega joined the trip this year.

“It was surreal,” diZerega said. “It was awesome. I was on a plane on the way back for our first game of sub-state. But it was worth it. How many people can say they’ve been able to sing at Carnegie Hall?”

Whether it’s singing or shooting threes, the Seahawks are thrilled with their progress throughout the past few years.

“We could’ve had (a spot at state) last year and we just came up short,” diZerega said. “Getting it this year makes it all the more better, all the more enjoyable.”