Brothers Tristin and Dawsin Tillman (Bellefontaine), both members of the Ohio Wesleyan men's basketball team, have been competing against each other since they were little.

Tristin, now a junior guard, and Dawsin, a sophomore wing player, were both recruited by OWU while at Bellefontaine High School, but Tristin initially chose to play at Marietta College before transferring to Ohio Wesleyan this year.

They agree that the opportunity to play with each other is very special, as not many people can say they have played a college sport with a sibling.

"We know how to play to each other's strengths and push each other to be better," said Dawsin.

The last time the brothers played together was in high school when they won a district title in 2014-15, when Dawsin was a sophomore and Tristin was a senior.

"It's easy to play with Dawsin because we both know each other's tendencies really well," said Tristin.  "I also think we know how to push each other to become the best players we can possibly be."

They have plenty of stories from growing up playing together but one in particular that they both recall was when Dawsin, then a freshman in high school, officially beat Tristin when he was a junior in a one-on-one game.  Tristin always challenged his younger brother to improve and never gave him an easy time.

"After all those years of him beating up on me, that first one-on-one win was pretty sweet," exclaims Dawsin.

Tristin admits that his younger brother grew so much in the game of basketball from his eighth-grade year to his freshman year.  Dawsin began to block more shots and play more competitively against his older brother.
 

"They both have been positive impacts for our team but in different ways," said Bishop head coach Mike DeWitt. "Tristin is very good at creating offense for himself and others, while Dawsin is a good defender and rebounder."
 

DeWitt mentions that they were fortunate enough to have Dawsin commit to OWU directly from high school.  When Tristin decided to look for a change, he looked at OWU because of the team's great success and because of his younger brother's positive experience.

"I am looking forward to getting a chance to play and compete every day with the guys to achieve our goals of winning a (North Coast Athletic Conference) championship and making a run in March," said Tristin.

Dawsin agrees with Tristin, as the team is competing every day for an NCAC championship with the opportunity to play in March.