If Scott Muska felt any pressure, he certainly hasn't shown it.

Muska, a senior guard for the Knoch boys basketball team, knew he had big shoes to fill when he replaced Ryan Ziacik.

Ziacik drained 81 3-pointers, the most in Butler County last season, and averaged 11.8 points per game in helping the Knights reach the WPIAL and PIAA playoffs.

Now, Muska was taking on that role.

"Yeah, I definitely did feel a little pressure," said Muska. "Coach (Les Shoop) told me over the summer I'd be the guy to perform beyond the arc.

"It made me work harder," Muska added.

Muska certainly has been a big boost for the Knights this season, ringing up 59 treys and averaging 13.9 points per game.

"I knew he would get better because he works so hard," said Shoop. "Some kids level off because they don't keep working."

Last season, Muska averaged 7.3 points a game and had 24 3-pointers. As a sophomore, he averaged nearly 20 points per game for the junior varsity.

"Ryan was a great 3-point shooter and I thought my role was more defensive," said Muska. "A lot of plays ran to him, so I didn't need to step up as much last year."

This year, Muska has been a consistent shooter, recording at least one 3-pointer in 21 of the Knights' 22 games. He had seven in a 91-67 victory over Deer Lakes Jan. 31 and six in an 81-45 win over St. Joseph's Dec. 12.

He also had five treys in two games, four in two games and four more games with three 3-pointers.

"Sometimes I feel I'll have a good night when I warm up. I'll feel good about a shot," said Muska. "Usually, if I hit my first shot, it gets my confidence up. After I make the first few, I feel really good."

But Shoop sees more from Muska than just an outside shooter.

"He's been taking the ball to the basket better," said Shoop. "Last year, he was a perimeter shooter. His whole game has improved."

Muska has benefited from having senior guard Jordan Shoop running the offense and sophomore forward Rob Briggs working inside.

"Jordan drives more and people collapse on him and he kicks it out," said Muska. "I've had a lot of easy shots."

Shoop is averaging 19 points a game and Briggs an additional 14.9 points per contest.

"It's great. Everyone seems to embrace their roles," said Muska. "Rob came in and we didn't know how good he'd be, if he'd have to mature, but he blew a lot of people away.

"Jordan's done a great job. We lost three seniors, so we had to step up if we were going to be competitive," added Muska, who would like to continue playing basketball in college.

"His scoring doesn't surprise me," said coach Shoop. "He's become a little more selective in his shots."

The Knights (15-7) finished the regular season tied for third place in Section 1-AAA and earned a trip back to the WPIAL playoffs. They will play South Park at 8 p.m. Monday at North Hills High School.

"We expect to get to the WPIAL championship. That's what we naturally expect," said Muska. "We've not played at our full potential, but our last four or five games, we've felt stronger."

And part of that success comes from Muska.

"He shoots and shoots and shoots," said Shoop. "He has a passion for the game of basketball. It's all he plays, and he plays every day."