Judging by his skill, Justin Harper looks like he’s been playing basketball all his life. It’s actually quite the opposite.
“I didn’t start playing until I moved to Vineland [from Bridgeton] in eighth grade,” Harper admitted. “I started playing basketball every day with my friends; it just made me into a basketball player.”
Now, Harper is a senior at Wildwood Catholic Academy and is one of the highest-scoring players in the area. His athleticism comes as no surprise, as he was a football quarterback growing up before switching to basketball just before high school. He also claims he’s quite the bowler when he’s out at the lanes with friends.
“I’m 200 points every time I play a game,” Harper said with a determined look.
It seems to be a similar path he is taking with basketball. Harper worked his way onto the court as a freshman three years ago at Wildwood Catholic and has been a steady contributor since. This school year, he has raised his game to a new level, scoring 20 points or higher in the first six games of the season, which included a pair of Crusader wins at the Boardwalk Basketball Classic at the Wildwood Convention Center on Dec. 26 and 27. Harper scored 26 and 20 points against Salem and Glassboro, respectively, in the showcase.
Harper said his decision to explore basketball really took off when he started working with his uncle, Derrick Byrd, a youth coach at the Vineland Police Athletic League.
“I had a coach, my uncle, who took time with me,” Harper said. “He saw the height, and he saw the potential and he made me the player that I am today.”
Harper, who is listed at 6-foot-4, still has family by his side: His 6-foot-4 cousin, Azmir Kates, is also a starting senior on the team.
The only issue was getting to school each day. Harper lives in Vineland, which is a 50-minute bus ride to North Wildwood each day. “It’s a tough commute,” Harper said. “Every day, I’m waking up at 5:30 or 6 in the morning. And it’s a 50-minute ride home, so I try to sleep [on the bus] when I can.”
Wildwood Catholic was 2-4 on the season after its first two games at the Boardwalk Basketball Classic. It was a nice rebound from a four-game skid to open the season, although the Crusaders were within striking distance in each contest. All four setbacks were single-digit losses, including a pair of three-point defeats.
“All four of our losses [to start the season] were close games,” Harper said. “I think we can learn from that. And now we are on a roll.”
The Crusaders are coming off an 11-13 season and are trying to get back to re-establishing a program that strung together three 20-win seasons from 2018 to 2020. Wildwood Catholic also had a run of 20-win seasons from 2013 to 2015. New goals have been set, and it starts with competing in the tough Cape Atlantic League.
“We want to win the CAL,” Harper said. “That’s our goal this year. I feel like we grew a lot and learned a lot from last year to this year.”
If they follow Harper’s example, the team should be quick learners.
For more photos, visit www.catholicstarherald.org/photos
at the bottom and then tap “Add to Home Screen”
