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Bowling Green State University Athletics
Tene Lewis a Spark for Falcons
February 23, 2005 | Women's Basketball
Feb. 23, 2005
By JACK CARLE, Sentinel Sports Editor - Tene Lewis doesn't have to score to be a factor for Bowling Green.
A 5-feet-8 senior, Lewis is the Falcons' igniter off the bench. She's a defensive stopper and can create offensive chances for her teammates when slashing to the basket.
"It's a rarity in today's game that an impact player can be a non-offensive player. We are not as good when Tene is not on the floor," said BG head coach Curt Miller. "Tene brings energy. She is our best individual defender, she brings a lot of defensive intangibles.
"Offensively, because of our attacking ball-screen offense, she has the ability to create for other people," Miller added. "Her penetration ability opens easier shots up for our post players and guards alike. That's what good players do, they make the other players on the floor better."
Lewis embraces her role with the Falcons, who are 17-7 overall and alone in first place in the Mid-American Conference West at 10-3 heading into Wednesday's matchup with East-leader Marshall. Wednesday's tipoff is at 7 p.m. in Anderson Arena.
"I love doing what nobody else can do," Lewis said. "I'm a go-to player when I come off the bench.
"Since the first time I played basketball, I always had that mentality that you don't always have to be a scorer. I love to make things happen by not always scoring ... being a behind the scenes player and doing all the little things to help my team win."
This season, Lewis is second on the team in both assists (76) and steals (49) and is fifth in rebounding (70) while averaging 3.0 points a game.
Still, it's defense that is Lewis' forte.
"I'm more so a defensive player, because I know it's hard," she said. "When scorers don't score, defense can keep you in the game. That's why I take pride in playing defense."
While Lewis likes not being the center of attention, it's extremely difficult not to notice her when she's on the court.
She's almost a blur in her play, but she stands out because of the face mask she wears to protect her nose, which has been broken three times. The last break was at the Islander Classic during Thanksgiving in 2003.
"I feel more comfortable (wearing the mask)," she said. "I go to the basket a lot. I'm not the biggest player on the court and at times I'm vulnerable to being hit in the face."
Lewis stepped to the forefront last season when veterans Stefanie Wenzel and Lindsay Austin went to Miller, asking that Lewis get more playing time.
"Last year Stefanie and Lindsay felt very comfortable with her on the floor," Miller said. "Our team basically rallied around Tene and there was communication from some of the veterans to find ways to get Tene on the floor more.
"That just shows that she's a really good team player and that her peers and her teammates really respect what she does for the team."
With Wenzel and Austin and newcomers such as Ali Mann and Liz Honegger all playing well last season, the team, including Lewis, was re-energized.
"It boosted our team and our chemistry a lot. It brought things together and we were hungry last year," Lewis said.
That attitude has continued this season as the Falcons have been one of the surprise teams in the conference, with three league games remaining.
"We saw our potential last year. We got to the (MAC tournament) championship game last season and we want to get back there this year," Lewis said. "We kept that mentality to stay hungry and keep bringing the energy into every game."
Lewis can fill in at three spots for the Falcons.
"Her versatility really helps," Miller said. "She's strong enough and plays hard enough to guard big threes. Obviously she's played a lot of backup point guard this year.
"When we made the adjustment early in conference play to get her back to her natural position at two guard, you saw our program really hit a different gear when Tene started to get more minutes back at her natural wing position. We've been a better team since then."
From the bench, Lewis watches the flow of the game and pretty much knows when Miller is going to make the move to get her into the action.
"I think it's better for me to come off the bench because I can get a feel for what's going on ... and see what I can do for my team and where I can help us the best," Lewis said.
