Mostly behind the scenes, Josh Hill has been a crucial piece of the puzzle for Sylvan Hills boys basketball for a decade.
Hill has led the Bears’ Junior High team since arriving in Sherwood prior to the 2014-15 school year and been highly successful. The school announced on Facebook Monday morning that Hill will succeed Kevin Davis, who retired in May after 26 years with the program. Davis won the Class 5A state championship with the Bears in 2012 and took them to the final round two other times.
Prior to his time in Bear Country, Hill had a successful stint at East Poinsett County from 2006-14. He took the Warriors to three consecutive Class 2A state championship games from 2011-2013 and won the first two. During his time at EPC, Hill coached former Arkansas Razorback Rashad ‘Ky’ Madden and current Sacramento Kings guard Malik Monk.
Sylvan Hills struggled in 2023-24, going 14-11 while finishing sixth in the 5A-Central standings and missed the state tournament for the first time since 2019.
Kyle Sutherland is a journalist and podcast host (Arkansas Preps Weekly) for The Natural State Sports Network. His written work has been featured in outlets including the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Best of Arkansas Sports and Hooten’s Arkansas Football. He is also the color commentator for 103.7 The Buzz’s high school football Game of the Week. Email Kyle at kyle@naturalstatesports.com.