EXTRA MILES
Senior guard pushes Griffith over .500 by pushing himself and his teammates
Griffith’s Savon Miles has a long memory.
When the senior guard needs to kick-start his motor before a game, he often looks back at the losses he endured earlier in his career.
“Whenever we’re going up against a good team or a team that beat us last year, I’m just thinking about how I can improve or how embarrassing that loss was,” he said. “And once I get into that game, it’s like a switch that turns on, and I get my energy from that.”
Those trips back in time have helped Miles emerge as the leading scorer for the Panthers (6-5), who enter the new year with a winning record for the first time since 2020.
The 6-foot-1 Miles is averaging 11.1 points, up from 8.0 last season, and that improvement is no accident. He spent a lot of time on the basketball courts at the YMCA in Griffith over the summer.
“I was shooting there almost every day,” he said. “I wouldn’t count the shots, but I’d start off with form shots from the 3-point line and then come in for midrange shots. Then we’d get some runs in.”
Miles said “we” because he was never alone at the YMCA. He was joined by a rotating cast of teammates, even if some of them were sick of his constant calls and texts.
“There were a lot of arguments,” Miles said with a laugh.
Griffith senior guard KJ Leflore, one of Miles’ most frequent companions at the YMCA, confirmed Miles’ persistence.
“He called me every day trying to hoop,” Leflore said. “He played a huge part in getting all of us to lock in and come to the gym. He’s always been a leader, so everybody just flocked to him. Even if they didn’t want to go, they still did because of who he is.”
Leflore also saw the development of Miles’ shot, which once drew less-than-favorable comparisons to NBA forward Draymond Green’s.
“He used to shoot like he was carrying a backpack,” Leflore said. “But he’s really learned to settle down and how to set his feet. He’s more agile now when he shoots the ball.”
But offense is just part of what Miles brings to the team, according to Griffith coach Josh Belluomini.
“He’s just our energy,” Belluomini said. “Our team has, for the most part, pretty reserved kids. He’s the one who brings a lot of energy to his game. He plays with a lot of passion.”
Belluomini used Griffith’s 67-43 loss to Merrillville on Dec. 12 as evidence of Miles’ importance. Miles wasn’t in the lineup that night.
“That was the one game this year when we just got our brains beat in,” Belluomini said.
But Miles has been a staple in the lineup otherwise, finding success this season because of all the hours he invested in the summer.
“I just got more confident in the way I play basketball,” he said. “I’m not really thinking too much, just playing ball.”
Miles is far from content, however, and is still seeking out ways to improve. One recent focus stems from the Panthers’ 53-44 loss to Bishop Noll on Dec. 6.
“I missed a lot of free throws that could’ve won the game or kept us in it at the end,” Miles said. “That’s stuck with me.”
Miles said he attacks every part of basketball with the same energy, believing that gives him the extra edge he needs to succeed.
“It’s just doing the little things that other people can’t do,” he said.