Sharks Taking Advantage Of Three-Point Proficiency

The Miami Dade College men’s basketball team (4-1) is off to a quick start this season and a big part of their success has been the ability to hit the three-point shot.

In their four wins, the Sharks have shot 40% from three-point range; they have shot an abysmal 22.2% from long range during their loss.

“We have recruited players who are capable three-point shooters,” said head basketball coach Stephen Cowherd. “We want them to make shots when they are open.”

Forward Joe Mvuezolo Jr. is one of the players that has the green light to shoot from the three-point line. This season, Mvuezolo Jr. has a three-point shooting percentage of 40.9%.

He shot 39% from three-point range last year while averaging about two, three-pointers a game. Although it’s only a slight difference, his improvement comes from taking shots in practice and constantly watching game tape.

“I feel a lot more comfortable shooting the ball because I put in the work during the summer,” Mvuezolo Jr. said. “I’ve been a threat to teams because I can shoot from any spot on the floor because I work on my jump shot every day.”

Mvuezolo Jr. can often be seen at practice shooting the ball from various long-range spots on the court.

“I personally prefer shooting the three, but I feel comfortable taking it in the lane,” Mvuezolo Jr. said. “When I know I can beat my defender, I can take it to the hole or kick it out to someone for a shot.”

One of the players who is often on the receiving end of a Mvuezolo Jr. assist is freshman Antanas Krimelis, who averages 6.2, three-point shots a game for the Sharks, good for second best on the team to Mvuezolo Jr.’s 7.3, three-point attempts per game.

Krimelis has also been proficient, connecting on 40% of his long-range shots and making 2.5 three-pointers per game. He has worked hard after practice, shooting countless shots, he says, to get better.

“I just shoot until I feel like I did enough for the day,” Krimelis said. [In a game], if I’m open, I will shoot a three most of the times.”

That hard work is paying off. In Krimelis’ first game, he went two of eight from the three-point line and in his fifth game he progressed to making 4 of 6. But it isn’t just Mvuezolo Jr. and Krimelis who are authorized to take a three-point shot.

“Everyone has the green light [to shoot three-pointers] as long as it is an open shot and the extra pass is made,” Cowherd said.