Nearly Two Years After His Brothers Were Fatally Shot, Stillwell Flourishing At MDC
After losing his two older brothers—Cortez and Perry—to gun violence in 2021, Jamichael Stillwell was ready to give up.
He questioned his love for basketball. Dropped out of Hamilton Heights Christian Academy in Chattanooga, Tennessee during his junior year and moved back to his hometown—Atlanta.
But then another life altering event shook him: the birth of his daughter, Amia, in May of 2021.
“Something told me I had to keep going,” Stillwell said.
So he re-enrolled in high school at Elevation Prep in Fort Wayne, Indiana where he graduated in 2022.
Now the six-foot-seven-inch forward is flourishing at Miami Dade College. Stillwell is averaging 14.2 points as a freshman for the Sharks and leads the team with 9.3 rebounds per game.
“He is a great player,” said Deval Harrell, a six-foot-one-inch guard who is Stillwell’s roommate. “He is a great rebounder. He never stops playing and has a positive attitude.”
Stillwell’s passion for basketball was reignited in Indiana after a five month layoff from the game. As a senior at Elevation Prep, he averaged 24 points and 11 rebounds and was the most valuable player at the High School Platinum Division Championship in March 2022.
Since he landed in Miami six months ago, Stillwell has helped lead the Sharks to a nine-game winning streak—the team’s longest in nine years. In MDC’s first four conference games, he scored 64 points including 15 in a 50-49 win versus Florida Southwestern State College on Jan. 11. The Buccaneers were the 22nd ranked team in the nation at the time.
Stillwell, who has scored at least 20 points in three games this season, has snagged 187 rebounds, which is 12th in the country, according to the National Junior College Athletic Association.
“[He is] a dog, a competitor, tough. He never stops playing, [he] doesn’t back down,” said Sharks assistant coach Dillon “DJ” Jenkins. “He is one of those types of guys that might not be pretty but he gets the job done.”
This winter break, Stillwell returned to Atlanta to see his daughter who is turning two in May. The excursion was a reminder of who he is sacrificing for.
“She is a gorgeous girl,” Stillwell said. “When I am feeling down I see her. She is always laughing and wants to play with me.”
The Sharks next game is on the road versus Hillsborough Community College on Jan. 25 at 7:30 p.m.
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