When forwards April McKinney, Katie Battern and Bridget Beckmann graduated after last season, many thought that the Billikens’ offense would focus on its guards.
But no one asked sophomore forward Angie Lewis.
Lewis appeared in all 28 games as a freshman and provided valuable minutes off the bench. She averaged 5.3 points and 3.3 boards a game. She scored a then-career-high 12 points, including 6 for 6 from the charity stripe in 22 minutes against DePaul. Lewis pulled down nine rebounds against SIU-Carbondale.
“Freshman year was a real learning experience for me,” Lewis said. “I had to learn so much.”
After the season, Lewis spent the summer improving her skills and her status in the Billikens’ frontcourt.
“At the end of the season, we all set goals for ourselves. Mainly, I wanted to play with more confidence,” Lewis said. “I wanted to be a better shooter, hit the boards harder, get faster and do whatever I have to do to help the team. I worked on my 15 and 17-foot jumpers, ballhandling, footwork and jumping. It was a lot of jumping rope.
“With Katie, April and Bridget gone, I knew that the post was a position that needed to be filled,” Lewis added.
Lewis has already filled the position and gone beyond the usual expectations for a sophomore. Lewis is leading the Billikens in scoring with 13 points a game and rebounding with 10.2 boards a game.
Lewis’ effort on the boards has surprised some people. Even though she’s rarely the tallest player on the court, she often out-rebounds centers who have a three-or-four-inch advantage on her.
“It’s all desire,” Lewis said. “You just have to want it more. It’s knowing when your teammates will shoot and when they’ll pass on an opportunity. We play with them so much that you just know.”
After scoring eight points against both Southwest Missouri State and SIU-Carbondale, Lewis went off for 15 points and seven boards against Lamar. Her roll continued against Lipscomb, where she notched 12 points and nine rebounds.
“This year has been a lot easier. I didn’t have to go through the process of learning the offense,” Lewis said. “Confidence is such a big factor. The shots that I’m making this year are shots that I could have made last year. It’s just a confidence issue.”
Lewis notched career-highs in points and rebounds with 18 points and 13 boards against Southeastern Louisiana.
She then led the Billikens to a win over Dayton on Tuesday with 17 points and 13 boards.
Even though she didn’t have a size advantage against the Flyers, Lewis thrived in part because of the team’s preparation.
“We knew that they would play off us. We wanted our guards to dribble up and make them play us,” Lewis said. “If they doubled-down in the post, we’d kick it out.”
Lewis realizes that success has come from a basic approach to the game.
“On offense, I just look to score. If I can’t, I look for an open teammate. My main goal is to take good shots,” Lewis said. “Defensively, I want to stop our opponents. Good positioning is the most important thing about defense. I also have to be able to help my teammates out and make sure that I’m in a position to slide over.”
Despite the fact that she’s only a sophomore, Lewis has been thrust into a role of leadership, with the Billikens having no seniors on the team.
“I definitely feel that I’m in a position of leadership on the team this year,” Lewis said. “It comes with a lot of responsible. I’m willing to face that challenge. I try to help my teammates out.”
Lewis’ goal for the year is as basic as her approach-she wants to do her job and do it well.
“Consistency is a goal for me this year. I want it to go from me playing a `good game’ to it just being another strong effort.”
