When it comes to shooting hoops, Oxford resident Jordan Williams can make the net sing with swish after swish.
‘He’s a gamer,? said Mike Neff, coach of the Oxford Wildcats sixth-grade basketball team, on which Williams is a player. ‘If somebody has a hand in his face, he’ll make the shot.?
That’s why it’s no surprise that Williams, a sixth-grader at Oxford Middle School, is slated to compete in the state finals for the Michigan Recreation and Park Association (MRPA) Hoops Challenge Sunday, March 22 at the Palace of Auburn Hills.
The MRPA Hoops Challenge is a basketball shooting competition in which participants attempt shots from different areas on the court, each worth a certain amount of points.
All participants have 60 seconds to make as many shots as they can.
Williams, 12, qualified for the event by winning first place in the Boys 12-13 category with 45 points at the regional competition held March 1 in Frankenmuth.
‘Not only did he win the competition in Frankenmuth, but he scored the highest out of everybody in every age group ? even out of the 14 and 15-year-olds,? said proud mother Julie Williams.
There’s really no secret to Williams? shooting ability. It’s a combination of practicing for 1? hours a day, four days a week, and achieving the proper form.
Williams, a fan of the Detroit Pistons and player Rip Hamilton, wishes to continue playing basketball through middle school and into high school. He’s not sure if he wants to play college ball.
Someday he could be the one leading the Wildcats to a state championship.