When Jett Montgomery was a freshman, his English and Spanish teachers asked the classes to write down three goals for their high school careers at Independence.
“One of my goals was to be the all-time leading scorer,” Montgomery said.
Mission accomplished.
Montgomery broke Grayson Murphy‘s school record of 2,093 career points on a turnaround jumper in the second half of a 57-54 win over Green Hill on Dec. 18.
The Southern Miss signee has 2,252 points entering Tuesday’s game at Page.
During Montgomery ‘s freshman year, he saw a plaque on the wall at school commemorating Murphy’s scoring record.
“He said he was going to break Grayson Murphy‘s record,” said his dad, Mark. “I told him, dude, that’s going to be hard.”
The elder Montgomery knew firsthand how difficult breaking 2,000 points would be after scoring 2,009 as a guard at Pearl River Central (Miss.) from 1987-90.
The younger Montgomery grew up in Gulfport, Miss., in a house that is 500 yards from the Gulf of Mexico.
He was born 3-and-a-half months after Hurricane Katrina roared through Gulfport in 2005. The Category 5 hurricane caused an estimated 1,833 deaths and approximately 161 billion in damages.
The fierce winds and devastating flooding destroyed the Montgomery‘s house, and they lived in a FEMA trailer for three months while their home was being rebuilt.
“The only thing left standing in Gulfport was the hospital where I was born,” Jett said. “It was a terrible few days.”
Many churches and other groups helped the Katrina victims recover.
“I saw the best of humanity,” Mark said. “So many organizations said what can we do to help you? Churches helped rebuild homes.”
Kids were hanging on trees and the roofs of homes to escape the floodwaters.
Mark played wide receiver at Southern Miss, where he got caught passes from Brett Favre.
“He was such a leader,” Mark said. “We were the team nobody wanted to play.”
Mark was an all-state player in football, basketball and baseball, but didn’t want to pressure Jett into becoming an elite athlete.
Jett loved basketball from an early age and his dad taught him shooting drills in the driveway.
“He would perfect them in two or three days and say show me something else,” Mark said.
Mark taught him everything he could before getting trainers Ty Bailey and Brian Hahn to work on his footwork, reading defenders and other aspects of the game.
Jett comes from an athletic family. His mom, Dee Dee, played basketball and softball at William Carey (Miss.). His great grandfather, Herman Shacklett, was an outstanding tennis player who graduated from Vanderbilt. Jett’s younger sister, MJ, is a freshman guard at Independence.
The Montgomerys moved to Thompson‘s Station in 2007.
“We made a fresh start in Tennessee,” said Jett, a 6-foot guard who is averaging 21 points per game this season. The senior is hitting 80% from the free throw line and 35% from 3-point range.
“He can score at every level: at the rim, mid-range and the 3-point line,” Independence head coach Mark Wilkins said. “He can score in a lot of different ways and he’s hard to guard.”
Montgomery scored a career-high 40 points in a loss to Fairview during his sophomore season. He had nine 3-pointers during a district semifinal win over Summit last season.
“He’s definitely the best scorer I’ve ever seen," Wilkins said. “But he does a great job with assists and facilitates well.”
Montgomery is quick to credit his teammates for his offensive success.
The Eagles love to play up-tempo. His teammates grab most of the defensive rebounds, then Indy races the other way and Montgomery is often the finisher.
Montgomery and guard Tylan Lewis combine to form one of the best backcourts in the state. Lewis is averaging 13.4 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game.
“Jett puts the time in the gym and that gives him great confidence,” said Lewis. “He’s one of the best catch-and-shoot guys I’ve seen.”
Montgomery scores a lot of his points coming off screens.
“He’s kind of a Steph Curry,” Lewis said
Montgomery‘s favorite basketball player is Memphis point guard Ja Morant.
Montgomery is a volunteer for Best Buddies, a program for special needs students at Independence. His mother, a teacher at the school, is a sponsor of the program.
Montgomery led Indy to its best-ever season last year. The Eagles finished second in Class 4A after a 69-57 loss to Memphis Overton in the final. They broke the school record for wins, going 33-5.
“He has the ultimate freedom in their offense,” Centennial head coach Jeremy Moore said. “If you put a bigger guy on him, he’ll use his quickness to go to the rim. If you use a smaller guy, he’ll shoot over the top of them from the outside.”
“He’s a very explosive player in their system,” added Moore, whose team lost to Indy in triple overtime on Friday.
The Eagles are hoping to make another deep run this season. They are off to a 14-3 start, including a 2-0 record in the new District 10-4A, which features eight Williamson County teams.
“It’s going to be a battle every night,“ Montgomery said.
Montgomery will have a lot to say about how far the Eagles go this season.
Commented
Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles.