BELTON, Texas- The UMHB women’s basketball team boasts a highly talented incoming class heading into the 2021-2022 season. One member of that group who has the potential to compete for playing time immediately is 5’10 shooting guard Jordan Green-Wallace, a freshman from Fort Worth, Texas.
A perimeter player with height and speed, Green-Wallace has all the tools necessary to become a standout for the Cru. During her senior year of high school this past season, she averaged 8.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game, earning an Honorable Mention All-District honor.
We caught up with Green-Wallace to discuss her high school career, her thoughts on UMHB’s coaching staff, and much more in this edition of “Catching up with the Commits”.
Q: What made UMHB the school for you?
JGW: “UMHB was actually my family’s first choice. Right when Coach Morefield sat down with me, and told us he was offering us, we were like, ‘This is home.’ Walking around, it didn’t make me feel uncomfortable or anxious like other places. I visited ETBU and UT-Tyler and they felt uncomfortable to me.”
Q: You had a decorated high school career at Southwest High in Fort Worth. Are there any particular games or moments that stick out to you from your time there?
JGW: “I actually have two. [One was] my first game with my sister, who used to play at Southwest with me. It felt like we were younger again, when we used to play for the little recs team, and it felt like we were building a better bond. We always had a good bond, but it made more memories come back to life. And also, my senior night, I scored my high school career high with 32 points. It was a tough year and I just wanted to prove my head coach and a lot of other people that I’m better than what you say I can be.”
Q: You transitioned from being a post player to a shooting guard midway through your high school career. When did that switch take place and how did you adjust to the new position?
JGW: “I actually was a post my freshman year and I moved up to shooting guard my sophomore year with a new coach. He saw that I was a good shooter, was working day-in, day-out. We would just do shootaround, so I could work on my form and get better.”
Q: Is there anything specific you took away from your AAU/High School career that you want to improve on here at UMHB?
JGW: “During AAU I actually always came off the bench because I felt like I wasn’t good enough to play with the other girls I played with. We were so close as a team, I just felt like I wasn’t good mentally, because of coaches telling me I wasn’t good enough and all that. Going into college, my goal is to not be afraid of making a mistake because it is helpful to make a mistake. I think I’ve grown a lot in confidence because being 5’10 as a shooting guard is hard, especially in AAU. You’re tall, but people want you to be a post. Don’t get me wrong, everyone [who goes to the college level] gets intimidated, but I want to go in with confidence.”
Jordan Green-Wallace highlights vs. Cleburne High School
Q: From some of what you have said and posted, you had a lot of doubters throughout your high school playing career. What allowed you to overcome those hurdles?
JGW: “I use this as an example. I had a brand-new coach. He’s not really a good coach mentally, but he is good at giving plays. Everytime he said a bad remark to me, it was just one more reason to prove him wrong. One of our teammates for example was saying that he said I should be more like my sister, even though he’s never coached my sister a day in his life. That was one thing to motivate me to become better.”
Q: This might be a hard question to answer, but what are some of your goals for your first year in Belton?
JGW: “I would say my freshman year goal is just to have fun and not stress myself out as much as I did this year. Another thing is to talk to a lot of people who can help me with my academics and just in general, being able to reach out to someone and say, ‘I need help with that’. Because at my high school that was hard.”
Q: Has there been a particular player that you’ve tried to model your game after?
JGW: “I would say Diana Taurasi. The way she plays, she’s not playing just to win. She’s playing to become a better a better athlete and she represents the WNBA so well. I’ve idolized her for so long. She was playing at the first WNBA game [I ever went to], so I’ve always just watched her over and over.”
