Jordan Sears shooting the ball during the game against Little Rock on January 13th, 2024. | Photo Credit / Erika O’Brien
Jordan Sears is the starting point guard for UT Martin men’s basketball team. Sears is in his second year at UT Martin after two years at Gardner Webb. He is coming off a hot season where he earned All-OVC first team and OVC All-Newcomers. He is a Sports Management major who looks to get the best out of his teammates and friends. He wears No. 3 for the basketball team. Towards the end of the season, his stats include 76 rebounds, 78 assists, three blocks, 32 steals, 369 points and he has made 57.9% of all his shots. Most know who Sears is on the court but this interview shows who he is on and off the court.
How did you get into basketball?
“My older brother and my cousin. I grew up watching them play a little bit. Then Derrick Rose, current NBA point guard for the Memphis Grizzlies, being my favorite player, helped with extra motivation. Those three made me want to get into basketball and pursue that more.”
How do you balance school and basketball?
“Time management, you have work, you have games and practices. You kind of take care of the work first and then that way, all you have to focus on is games, practices and workouts.”
How do you prepare for each game? Routine, ritual, or random?
“I always got to take a nap before every game. There are not really any rituals like that. It is more of a mindset thing for me. I just make sure I am ready to play and ready to attack the day at all times.”
What were some goals you had heading into this season? How far along are you in completing those goals?
“I do not have any individual goals. Everybody wants to do something special, but for me it is more how can I get the most out of my team by being a better leader. That is something I have been working on for the most part. I would say I am growing. I am doing a pretty good job at it. There is always room for improvement and lessons learned. Sometimes you make a couple mistakes, but I feel like that comes along with being a point guard in general. I would say mostly just my leadership. I do not base myself on any individual accolades or anything like that. Maybe shooting the ball over 40 percent this year from the three and I’m doing pretty good at that.”
What have been some of your favorite moments from this season?
“I would say we had a couple huge practices for us in terms of us having fun and playing together. That is always good from a chemistry standpoint. We got a road sweep at the beginning of the season, and that is pretty hard to do to win on the road, especially two games in a row like that.”
What are some challenges you have faced this season? How did you overcome those challenges?
“I would say we lost some games we probably should not have earlier on but our preparation leading up to those points probably helped us a little bit more. We are a much different team, more together and stronger after those losses. So I would say they have helped us going forward for these next couple of games.”
How do you get the best out of your teammates? How do they get the best out of you?
“We just push each other. We talk to each other from a place of wanting to win, a place where we care about each other and to see each other do the best we can.”
What do you look forward to for the rest of the season?
“Just to see us continue to grow and get better. Not only on the court but off the court.”
