Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, January 12, 1995 TAG: 9501130064
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: S4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DWIGHT FOXX STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
What a difference developing a jump shot can make. Willis is arguably Timesland's best shooter this season and is a huge reason why Glenvar started 6-1 and is the favorite to win the Pioneer District.
As a sophomore, the 6-foot-2 Willis played inside for the Highlanders with his back to the basket and banged with the other big bodies in the Pioneer District. Since the conclusion of the 1993-94 campaign, the southpaw's game has moved into a new dimension.
He credits three things that happened last summer with helping him develop a jumper that swishes through the net.
One was playing on the same 16-and-under Roanoke Stars AAU team with William Fleming's sensational James Stokes. Stokes' ability to man the paint allowed Willis to work hard on his ballhandling, dribbling and outside shooting.
In one AAU game against George Wythe, Willis poured in a personal all-time high of 41 points.
"At camp, I was still working on my jumper," Willis said of his outburst. "I wasn't used to shooting like I am now."
The second thing that helped him was two-on-two pickup games with teammates Josh Williamson and Daniel Webb at Williamson's home. Williamson's father, Jimmy, would also play.
"He [Jimmy Williamson] was so strong that he would push me outside," the junior said. "If I was going to score, it was going to have to come from the outside, because he wouldn't let me score inside."
The third help was when Benny Kawa, a coach at Glenvar, taught him a set of shooting drills that had him shooting from different angles on the court this summer.
"Basically, every day," Willis said about when the shooting sessions took place. "We would play for an hour and then shoot for an hour."
All the things that Willis did this summer to make himself a better player are paying off as he is the Highlanders' leading scorer at 17.9 points per game. Willis showed his considerable promise in a 95-82 win over a quick, athletic Carlisle team in the championship game of the North Cross Invitational on the eve of Christmas Eve.
Carlisle, a private-school team, came in undefeated and unchallenged until it ran into a one-man wrecking machine. Willis scored a career-high 39 points on 14-for-20 shooting that night, including numerous 3-pointers, to send Carlisle to its first defeat.
He missed his first shot of the game, made 10 straight, and finished the first half with 24 points, including 10-for-13 shooting from the field. He continued this torrid pace in the third period with 11 points.
Carlisle had no answer. Willis hit three-pointers; driving layups; pull-up jumpers from the wing and down the middle. Simply put, this smooth lefthander was in a zone.
"Every time you touch the ball, you know it's going in," Willis said of being in a zone. "It feels good."
Coach Lawrence says Pioneer District teams are aware of him and will try to prevent him from dominating games like he did against an unassuming Carlisle squad.
"That basket was like 5 feet wide," Lawrence said. "He's had runs in other games, too, were he would hit four or five baskets in a row."
It wasn't until the team went to a basketball camp at Radford that Lawrence realized that Willis had developed an outside touch. The ninth-year head coach says Willis is the best 3-point shooter on the team and the best player he's ever had.
"Talent-wise, he's probably the most talented," Lawrence said. "Ballhandling, passing, shooting combined with his quickness and leaping ability ... I've had some good ballplayers, but not any with the total package."
The coach is proud of the progress Willis made from his sophomore to junior year but says he needs to make the same progress between his junior and senior seasons if he wants to play Division I basketball. The coach already knows one area where he needs to improve.
"He's gotten better; but defensively, he isn't where we want him to be," Lawrence said. "He doesn't use his quickness [feet] like he should."
Willis says he knows he must get stronger and make great strides on the defensive end. It's his skills and leadership that may ultimately lead the Highlanders to the Pioneer District title.
"He's a natural leader," Lawrence said. "The kids look up to him. As he goes, so does the team. He accepts that role."
Glenvar's top scorer knows he has the confidence and jump shot to take this team deep into postseason play.
"Whenever I think I'm open, I'm shooting," Willis said. "When I'm under control and focused, I can hit the shot."
Keywords:
BASKETBALL
by CNB