Valley Forge Military Academy’s Will Anozie joins 1,000-point club

RADNOR >> The leading scorer in Pennsylvania put his name in the Valley Forge Military Academy record book Tuesday night.

Will Anozie scored 43 points against MaST Charter to bring his career total to 1,000 points.

“I’m just grateful to be here,” Anozie said. “I’m not supposed to be here. This was never supposed to happen. I’m very, very thankful for everything. I couldn’t do it without God and my family and my coaches.”

“It’s been an incredible journey for him,” VFMA coach Tim Smallwood said. “Starting out as a freshman coming off the bench playing varsity, then we just threw him right into the fire as a sophomore and he’s never looked back. We haven’t had the success that we wish we had this year, but it’s just been a pleasure to watch him play the whole year. He puts on a show every single game.”

The senior put on a show Tuesday, shooting 17-for-32 from the field, including 6-for-13 from three-point range, and 3-for-4 from the free-throw line in his 43-point effort. He added six rebounds and four assists in the 65-55 loss.

Anozie, who has five 40-point game this year and two 50-point games, scored 10 points in both the first and second quarters. He finished the first half with a steal and called timeout with one second left. The Trojans drew up a three-quarter court pass to Anozie, who buried a three-pointer to beat the buzzer. 

He scored nine points in the third quarter before reaching the 1,000-point milestone with 14 in the fourth. He got the final two on a layup at the end of the game. 

Here’s the basket that put Anozie at 1,000 pic.twitter.com/XdkahKw3O1

— Ed Morlock (@emor09) January 26, 2022

The 6-foot-2, 165-pound guard is averaging 34.3 points per game, making him the leading scorer in the state and a top five scorer in the nation. 

The Houston native showed his ability to score from all three levels Tuesday. He got to the rim with ease, drilled midrange jumpers and knocked down six three-pointers. 

“Midrange was really my game,” he said. “My brother, when he was teaching me how to shoot, he was like, ‘The midrange game will never die. It’s the best shot to take, ever.’ It’s pretty much automatic for me. It really started with the midrange and then do a little (hesitation) and get to the rim, do a little step-back get to the three-point line. It really started from the midrange. All the greats had a good midrange.”

Anozie was a backup as a freshman at Valley Forge Military Academy before stepping into the starting lineup as a sophomore and averaging 20 points per game. He went back to Houston as a junior to play at St. Thomas High School, where he averaged 11 points while facing tougher competition and dealing with a left leg injury. 

“I’ve always had it in me,” Anozie, who’s staying patient waiting for college offers, said. “I just needed it to be unlocked. I don’t know if anyone knows, but I used to train down in Philly with Lewis Leonard and Jonathan Hall – he coaches at Imhotep. Those guys really just helped me from my eighth grade year to my freshman, sophomore, junior year. They just helped me so much. They really helped me become a huge scoring threat like some of the guys down in Philly are. I’m very grateful.”

Anozie moved from Texas to New York when his brother went to St. John’s University. His brother was admitted to medical school at Drexel University, which brought them to Philadelphia. As an eighth grader he received a scholarship to attend Valley Forge Military Academy.