Oak Ridge’s James stands out
You never know where Mike James is going to show up on the basketball court. It could be on the perimeter one night and in the post the next.
What you do know is he’ll be on time, and he’ll give it everything he has.
James, a 6-foot-6, 200-pound senior workhorse, leads top-ranked Oak Ridge (22-2) into a Class 7A Region 2 championship game on Friday night at home against Sarasota Riverview (22-6). The winner will advance to next week’s state tournament to play a semifinal against the Region 1 champ, either Dr. Phillips (21-3) or Sanford Seminole (16-7), on Friday, March 5, at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland.
“All season we’ve been knowing we’ve got unfinished business,” James said — referring to the Pioneers’ painful overtime loss in a final four game last season against eventual state champion Miramar. “That’s the motivation for all of us. I feel like when we win a state championship, I know I’ll have achieved everything I wanted to accomplish here.”
James, who came to Oak Ridge as a junior after starting for Wekiva as a ninth and tenth grader, leads the Pioneers in points per game (20.7), rebounds (10.2) and blocked shots (1.3) while shooting 58% from the field, 79% from the foul line, and an impressive 44% on 3-point shots (27-of61). He is also third on his team in assists (2.7) and has established himself as the most versatile player in the Orlando area — maybe in the state — with his to ability to play every position on the floor at either end.
“I can play every position, it just depends on what coach [Steve] Reece feels is the best lineup for the situation,” James said Wednesday night. “If coach wants to up the tempo he’ll put our smaller, quicker guards in the game and I can play the four or the five. A lot of times its four guards and me and we just rip [rebounds] and run.”
That scheme, with a cadre of guards that includes seniors Kaleb Thomas and Melaun Buckner, sophomore Jamari Sands and ninth grader Elijah Elliott, can create havoc. But James is just as comfortable playing the point or a wing role when Reece rolls out a big, bruisng lineup that includes 6-6 seniors Roddrick Henry and Jeremiah Bannister, 6-6 junior Lewis Jones, and flashy 6-3 junior guard Fabio Basili.
James, a top 100 prospect who signed with Louisville in November, is just as versatile defensively. He can torment opposing guards with pressure man-to-man quickness and at the high school level can be just as effective checking a center in the paint.
“My versatility really started coming out my junior year, and that comes with coaching,” James said. “Coach Reece has put countless hours and hours in the gym with me.
“It’s not just me. He’s all in for all of us. The way he cares for each and every player on his team, from the starters to the bench. That’s one thing that goes unnoticed about him. A lot of people just know about the wins but don’t know what goes on behind the scenes in development.”
Reece is just as lavish with his praise of James.
“Mike is a player you can depend on night in and night out,” Reece said Thursday. “One of them guys who comes every day to work. Never been late. Not for a workout, not for practice, not for a game. He’s a kid that wants to win and wants to get better. He’s a great kid.”
Reece said James is ready for the next level with a 4.2 GPA and a sky-high basketball IQ. And James believes it was his work ethic and versatility that caught the eye of Louisville (12-5) coach Chris Mack, who brought Xavier to the NCAA Tournament seven times in eight years and has an 82-56 record in three seasons at Louisville.
“Coach Mack, he loves hardnosed guys that play good defense and are versatile on the offensive end,” James said. “I think that’s what they saw in me.”
Reece said it’s a perfect fit.
“Coach Mack is a developer and he wants tough guys that work hard. That’s Mike.”