Redlands Luke Mathis Geared Up for "Hoop Shoot" Contest

Many community members are very familiar with the name Luke Mathis by now. Moore Middle School student in Redlands is nothing short of a youth basketball star as everyone has witnessed his obvious talent throughout the years from the Elks Hoop Shoot Contests. As he earned many accolades in the past years, Mathis has proven that his success is not just a shooter’s touch. It’s due to his hard work, dedication, and love for basketball. Mathis has been the California State Champion for the past two years, the Regional runner-up two years ago; he was the Regional Winner this past year and took fifth place in the entire Nation last year in the “Elks Hoop Shoot Contest.” As Mathis previously shared his “No Days Off” motto, Mathis goes to the gym before school, after school, and even later on in the evenings to keep working on perfecting his shot. This year, the motto doesn’t change as he shoots about 450 shots in just one day. His father Marvin Mathis added, “We call this the triple D’s – Determination, Dedication, and Drive. This contest has only served to enhance and reinforce that latter.” That time of year for basketball is back, and Mathis is ready as his journey will start in December with a local competition at the YMCA in Redlands. According to Marvin, every month is a new competition. "Each month is taking another step further," he said. The five waves to progress through, in chronological order, are: Local, District, State, Regionals, and then the last step is Nationals. "It's a great contest; they do an awesome job," Marvin said. "Tony Lemos, the organizer for Redlands, does a great job of getting the word out there about the contest." According to Marvin, there are about three million kids worldwide that participate in the contest. Mathis has made it to the top 12 in previous years. Mathis' favorite NBA team is the Los Angeles Clippers with his favorite player being Chris Paul. “Just work hard every time and your time will come,” Mathis shared. “Because of those attributes and characteristics he’s developing, it’s going to help him be successful in anything in his life,” Marvin shared. The Elks National Foundation has recently made a video about Luke Mathis titled "A Real Cool Hand". It can be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMB7zKr6XTQ [END] It's a great contest, they do a great job - Tony Lemos -organizer for redlands. he does a great job of getting the word out there. There's a chance of going as far as he gone. he works so hard just to do what he's done. over 3 million kids partipate worldwide - to make it to the top 12 old reference to a movie - about losing character - 90% is how you react to it 1st - lost in district 2nd -regionals 3rd - all the way to nationals 5 steps: local - dist - state - regional - nationals. every month you do another step - another competition starts in December. Favorite player - Chris Paul ---------------------------------------------------------------------- My name is Marvin Mathis and I am the parent of Luke Mathis. You have covered his achievements over the last couple years in the ELK’s National Hoop Shoot contest (and done an excellent job). The ELKS foundation just released a short video on Luke and his experience at the National Finals last year – here is the link http://youtube/mMB7z and is labeled “A real cool hand”. Luke has been the California state champion the last two years, Regional runner up two years ago, Regional winner last year, and 5th in the Nation last year in the ELKS HOOP SHOOT contest. This year’s journey starts first of December with the local competition at the Redlands YMCA. Luke is passionate about striving to be his best and puts forth the effort as he is at the gym before school and after school working on his shot daily. We call this the triple D’s – Determination, Dedication, and Drive – this contest has only served to enhance and reinforce the latter. I am not sure if this is newsworthy or what you were looking for when you contacted me but he is a local kid, attending Moore middle, and demonstrates positive attributes and characteristics. If you would like more info please feel free to contact me. Thank You, Marvin Mathis (909) 389 7304 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMB7zKr6XTQ RECENT STORY ON LUKE: (BY BREE): Four hundred baskets is all in a day's work for 10-year-old Luke Mathis. That's about how many baskets the fifth grader shoots every day; his practice and his simple motto - No Days Off - helped him win the championship title in the 10-11-Year-Old Boys division of the Elks Lodge Region 7 West "Hoop Shoot" contest held in Las Vegas in February. Mathis scored 22 of 25 free throws in the Hoop Shoot semi-finals, earning him a spot in the national competition next month in Springfield, Mass., the birthplace of basketball. The national competition tips off April 18, and Mathis is going for the male championship title in his age division. "It's definitely exciting," said Mathis's mother, Crystal Mathis. "He's worked so hard. He practices every day. He has a goal and he's working toward it. He says he feels like his hard work is paying off." The "Hoop Shoot" event is what Hoop Shoot director Tony Lemos described as one of "the most well-kept secrets here in the West Coast." Funded by the Elks National Foundation - created in 1928 as the charitable arm of the Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks, one of the country's oldest and largest fraternal organization - the annual Elks Hoop Shoot competition "offers youth the opportunity to engage in healthy competition, connect with their families and community and succeed both on and off the court," according to a release issued by the Elks National Foundation. Mathis proved himself as one of the country's 72 best free-throw shooters between the ages of 8 and 13, advancing through the local, district and state competition, netting in the most of 25 free throws in his age group at each contest. Now, he looks forward to the next step of the competition - and his first plane ride. "He's more excited than nervous, I think," said mother Crystal, who recounted her nervousness as her son competed in the recent competition held in Las Vegas. "It was [nerve-wracking] for me, but when he won, we were super excited," she shared. Practicing daily, Mathis shoots hoops before school, after school, and once again in the late afternoon. He's been playing basketball since he was 5, playing travel ball with Moreno Valley-based Cali Elite. He began playing the sport at the local YMCA, which is how he was introduced to Lemos, Crystal explained. "Luke is very well-deserving of a pat on the back," said Lemos. "He's out there every day, practicing his shooting." Luke dreams of becoming a professional basketball player, shared his mother. His favorite team is the Los Angeles Clippers and his favorite player is Chris Paul. "Little by little, he's making his goal, working up to high school and college and hopefully scholarships," said Crystal. "But what I think he's most looking forward to is, if he wins the national title, his name will be inscribed in the NBA Hall of Fame." Mathis's progress at the national competition can be viewed using the live Elks Hoop Shoot shot tracker, which can be accessed on April 18 at www.elks.org/hoopshoot.