CBB: Julian Lewis commits to W&M
Julian Lewis, a 6’6 shooting guard from Ann Arbor, Michigan, committed to William and Mary on Sunday, August 9 via Twitter. The senior-to-be explained his college decision: “William and Mary stood out to me because it was a great opportunity and a great fit for me. Not only is the school great academically, but they are also great in sports.”
Before Lewis heads to Williamsburg, Virginia to attend William and Mary, he has one more season at Ann Arbor Huron High School under head coach Waleed Samaha. The River Rats had expectations of competing for a state title last March before the postseason was cancelled due to COVID-19, but they’ll try to recreate that success next year.
“Playing at Huron has been great! Besides the fact that we won a lot, it’s just a great place to be around. I grew up around Huron because both (of) my brothers went there so I’ve been around the school for a long time,” he said. “I might be biased but being a part of the basketball program there is great.”
Lewis also discussed what makes Samaha one of the best coaches he’s been around: “He’s a great coach and cares about his team and players. (He) builds a strong community around basketball which I think helps us stay at a great and high level program. He also is a great person off the court because he’s like family to me.”
The Ann Arbor Huron product earned scholarship offers from 13 programs including Brown, Eastern Michigan, Toledo, Rice, Western Michigan, and more before deciding on William and Mary. By the time Lewis gets to campus in 2021, head coach Dane Fischer will be going into his third year with the team after being hired on April 2, 2019.
“I feel really confident about William and Mary. There are not too many places where you can get a really good education and be in a great league under one of the best coaching staffs,” Lewis told me. “I chose to commit before senior year because I wasn’t really looking for anything else. I felt if I’m not going to play then I should commit.”
William and Mary finished the 2019-20 campaign with a 21-11 record and a 13-5 conference record in Fischer’s first season, which was good enough for him to be named CAA Coach of the Year. The Tribe went 14-17 in 2018-19 under Tony Shaver. W&M will look to lean on Luke Loewe (10.7 points) and Thornton Scott (7.3 points) next year.
Lewis later touched on how the pandemic affected his recruiting: “My favorite part was visiting campuses because it’s cool to see what schools have to offer and you get to travel. Recruiting during the pandemic isn’t the same. I’m hoping for a season this fall but nothing is certain, so we are just going to have to go with the flow.”
Check out my breakdown of Lewis' game on Prep Hoops.
Photo Credit: The D Zone.
