Is It Luck? Not by a Long Shot : Basketball: Pomona senior guard Joe Phears has made 51.9% of his three-point attempts. He credits weightlifting for his success.

Joe Phears has little need for inspirational speeches or motivational team cheers before he plays in a basketball game.

Instead, Phears prefers to get pumped up in the weight room.

Phears, a 6-foot senior guard for Pomona High, puts anywhere from 150 to 200 pounds on a bar and finishes five sets of 10 repetitions on the bench press before each of the Devils’ games. That routine, Phears said, has gone a long way toward making him one of the best long-range shooters in Southern California.

Pomona Coach Ed Taylor gives Phears the green light to shoot from as far as 30 feet.

“Lifting weights before the game loosens me up,” said Phears, who has made 51.9% of his three-point attempts this season. “Most basketball players struggle to get the ball up to the basket from so far out, especially near the end of the game when they’re tired and the ball feels heavy. It always feels light to me.”

On Jan. 29, Phears demonstrated his touch by making 14 three-point baskets during a 137-101 Montview League victory over Bassett. Phears broke the Southern Section record of 13 set last season by Rick Martinez of Ambassador Christian in Fontana.

This season, his third on the varsity but only his first as a starter, Phears is averaging about 22 points a game for a Pomona team that entered the week 17-5 and 8-0 in league. Phears had made 98 of 189 three-point shots.

“I would prefer that Joe shoot a three-pointer rather than a layup,” said Taylor, who is in his fifth season at Pomona. “Most kids can make two or three three-point shots in a row, and then you don’t see them for the rest of the game. Joe makes them in every quarter. And he’s not limited to a certain area or spot on the floor. He has the ability to make them from the left, right or center of the basket.”

Phears, who also was the quarterback for the school’s football team, played varsity basketball as a sophomore because several more experienced players had suffered injuries. Phears was the first man off the bench for the Devils, and he averaged 10 points a game.

Last season, Phears again filled the sixth-man role and averaged 15 points for a Pomona team that won its fourth consecutive league championship and advanced to the third round of the 3-A playoffs.

Despite his status as one of the Devils’ top returning players, Phears once again began this season as the sixth man.

“He was so effective off the bench,” Taylor said. “Like they say, if it’s not broke, you don’t need to fix it.”

About 10 games into the season, however, it became apparent to Taylor that Phears could improve his team’s consistency if he was in the game from the opening tip.

“When I was a sophomore, I didn’t even think about starting, and last year we had a lot of seniors on the team so they deserved to get the nod,” Phears said. “But I’m glad I’m starting now. I’m able to get into the flow of the game faster.”

During his record-setting performance against Bassett, Phears was hot from the start. He had eight three-point baskets by halftime. By the end of the game, he had made 14 of 18 attempts.

“My teammates gave up several opportunities for layups to give me the ball,” Phears said. “We have a very unselfish team. Sometimes they look for me too much, but that night, I didn’t mind it.”

The Devils are indeed talented. Damion Morbley, a senior forward-center, is averaging about 23 points and 17 rebounds. Junior guard Donte Marks averages 14 points and has several spectacular slam dunks. Junior point guard Kiritan Williams averages six assists, and junior forward Corey Woodard averages 13 points.

Pomona’s only losses were to Cajon, Long Beach Jordan, Chino, West Covina and Morris of San Diego.

“If we can get a better grip on understanding pressure and how to deal with it, we can be (playing in the finals) in the Sports Arena,” Taylor said. “We’re not as defensively sound as I would like, but the players make up for it in other areas.”

Phears is confident that Pomona can win it all.

“We’re deeper than last year and more versatile,” he said. “We just need to stop people and give it our best shot.”