NORFOLK, VA (WTKR)- Booker T. Washington guard Zymareon Mitchell has been playing basketball his entire life, but he had never put together a performance like he did last Monday against Great Bridge.
"My shot was going," Mitchell recalled. "I couldn't be stopped, I would get to the rim easily, getting and-ones, other things, getting assists."
"I knew he had a good night because he kept us in the game," added Bookers' head coach Levi Wall. "At the end I just saw people trying to run to the scorers table to figure out what he had."
When the clock hit zero, the sophomore had scored 45 points and tallied 10 steals, leading Booker T. Washington to the 79-72 victory. It's a zone that not every player gets to experience and one that's even more rare as a tenth-grader.
"I know he has the talent," said Wall. "I've been watching the guy since middle school so I know he has that 'it' factor. I just never knew it was going to click this soon."
"It feels great," added Mitchell. "It feels like you can't be stopped, like you're the man."
The exciting thing for the Bookers is that it's early in the season. The sophomore sensation hopes he has a few more of those showings left in the tank that can help take his team to new heights.
"I hope I have a couple more games like this," he said. "Maybe we make a state playoff run and keep going all the way."
It doesn't stop on the court. Zymareon says he takes school very seriously as well, approaching it with the same focus as he does with basketball.
"I get to school on time, get all my work done," Mitchell noted. "Once I get on the court, all the stuff in my head disappears. When I get in school, all the stuff on the court disappears."
Mitchell may only be a sophomore, but he has already started to think about his future and what basketball can do for him and his family.
"I want it to take me to college. I wan to go to college, make it to the NBA and be a professional basketball player," he said of his hopes. "I'm trying to help my family get out of the hood, trying to move away."
Mitchell and the Bookers are out to a 6-1 start. They'll be back in action against Churchland on Monday, looking for their sixth straight victory.
