TIVERTON – Guarding Carson Hart has been a source of frustration for more than a few dedicated and capable defenders.
They make him work to just get near the basketball. And what happens? Hart, Tiverton High’s wiry 6-foot-3 senior, catches a pass and, in an instant, launches his deadly accurate, high-release jump shot for two or three points.
“It happens all the time,” Tiverton High head coach Dave Landoch said at the end of practice on Monday, three days after Hart had torched Shea High School for 42 points in a tight Rhode Island Division III home win. “It happened the other night with Shea. They were right on him. They were this close, right to his face. Hand to the face. But he just elevates over you and just releases so quickly, you can’t defend it.”
Watching Hart shoot is a basketball junky’s delight. The jumper isn’t just frighteningly accurate, it’s athletically artistic. Hart has that Larry Bird-like quality where his shot appears to move more slowly through the air than do the shots of other players, as if it’s a marshmallow rather than a ball. Even if that’s just an illusion, the added air time serves to give fans, coaches and teammates more time to anticipate (or in the case of opponents, dread) the frequent result. All net.
Hart’s shooting range is extraordinary, perhaps not quite like that of former Tiverton High bombardier Gunnar Bjornson. But then again, maybe so. While God-given talent play a part in Hart’s amazing shooting, practice and playing has had much to do with its development. You don’t shoot with his kind of long-range accuracy or execute a catch-and-shoot like Hart without having launched a few thousand, maybe tens of thousands, of shots. Hart’s shooting practice includes emphasis on technical aspects — squared hips, proper foot position — as well as shooting from a wide variety of spots.
“I believe Carson’s got a quicker release than I’ve ever seen,” Landoch said. “He elevates high off of the shot. He shoots over guys. It’s just smooth.”
“When I catch, that’s where the repetition comes in,” Hart said. “If I catch and a hand’s down, I’m pretty confident I can make a shot, no matter.
“I mean halfcourt, no,” he added with a laugh. “But I have pretty good judgement, I like to say (more laughter).”
Primarily a junior varsity player as a freshman, Hart earned a starting varsity role two seasons ago, averaging 16 points and 8 rebounds per game in helping the Tigers to the R.I. DIII championship. Last year, Hart averaged 22 points and 12 rebounds. His game includes more than shooting. He can handle the ball, lead or fill on the fast break. He bangs both boards, and can score inside.
His 2018-19 debut was the 42-point effort against Shea, a show which included eight 3-pointers. Landoch said Hart missed his first six shots but after that “he hit every ridiculous shot you can name. … He just took over the game. That was it. It was his time.”
In demolishing his previous single-game scoring best of 33 points, Hart had the full support of his team. Which is the norm. “I started off brick cold. I just kept shooting. My coach told me to keep shooting. My teammates told me to keep shooting. All of a sudden, it just started falling in. They (coaches, teammates) have more confidence in me than I do sometimes,” Hart said.
Landoch noted that back at practice on Monday, after his great game at Shea, Hart was working on improving his passing. “He’s a great teammate,” the coach said.
Hart followed his monster game against Shea with 22 points (16 in the first half) in an easy win at Prout on Tuesday.
Unlike so many other elite high school players, Hart does not have an impressive AAU resume. In fact, he has none at all. He’s gotten to where he is by playing hoops with his buddies, by practicing alone. It’s a recipe he’s thoroughly enjoyed.
“That’s why I like basketball,” he said. “It’s a team sport, but I can practice by myself. I was always busy enough playing offseason with my friends and I thought I put enough time in.”
AAU ball can be very time demanding, with travel, sometimes lots of it. And the feeling you're auditioning for college coaches and scouts.
“It’s not who he is,” Landoch said. “He’s a guy who just comes out and wants to have a good time all the time. He doesn’t get frazzled by anything. That’s probably why there’s no pressure on him.”
A honor roll student and a starting doubles player on the state championship tennis team last spring, Hart said that basketball in college is only a maybe. He said he’s heard from a couple of Division 3 schools. Not playing AAU ball has, arguably, kept him under the recruiting radar. But he said that’s fine.
“His attitude is, ‘If someone (college coach) comes to see me, great he came and saw me,’” Landoch said. “If no one comes, he’s like ‘whatever’.”
“My decisions about college are not necessarily being made because of basketball,” Hart said.
Email Greg Sullivan at gsullivan@heraldnews.com. Follow him @GregSullivanHN.