It’s hard to believe that only two years ago, Iman Shumpert was afraid to shoot.
“All I’d do was drive, and pretty soon everyone was playing zone against me,” he said.
He was in a zone Friday night, hitting 6 of 8 from three-point land and scoring 27 points in leading Oak Park to a 68-57 victory over host Proviso West. The triumph puts No. 15 Oak Park (14-3, 4-0) alone atop the West Suburban Silver. No. 18 Proviso West drops to 13-3, 4-1.
Shumpert hit back-to-back threes to open the third quarter as Oak Park went on a 9-2 tear for a 42-35 lead. An adjustment in the Huskies’ zone press took away the Panthers’ easy transition baskets. Proviso West never came within four points in the fourth quarter.
“I couldn’t shoot a lick as a freshman,” said Shumpert, a 6-foot-3-inch junior. “So I hired a shooting coach who broke down my technique. My shot was flat, no rotation, and my elbow wasn’t lined up.
“The summer after my sophomore year, I couldn’t get together with my shooting coach. So I’d go into the gym by myself and work on all kinds of shots. I’d shoot at least 500 shots–all day and night.”
His shooting prowess has more than 20 colleges hot on his trail, with Illinois, Wisconsin, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Georgia Tech, Clemson and Arizona State at the forefront.
“I got a lot of open looks tonight because my teammates were looking to give me the ball,” Shumpert said. “I felt like I couldn’t miss. Teams don’t usually try to press our point guard, Phil Gary. Proviso West did tonight, and I was the pressure release.”
Gary had 15 points and six assists, while junior Daniel Barnes contributed 16 points and seven steals. Proviso West was led by Nigel Jackson’s 18 points and nine rebounds. Justin Hightower added 17 points.
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bsakamoto@tribune.com
