Kira Lewis Jr.
Kira Aundrea Lewis Jr. (born April 6, 2001) is an American college basketball player. He played college basketball for the Alabama Crimson Tide.
Lewis at the Nike EYBL in July 2018 | ||||||||||||||
Personal information | ||||||||||||||
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Born | April 6, 2001 | |||||||||||||
Nationality | American | |||||||||||||
Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | |||||||||||||
Listed weight | 165 lb (75 kg) | |||||||||||||
Career information | ||||||||||||||
High school | Hazel Green (Hazel Green, Alabama) | |||||||||||||
College | Alabama (2018–2020) | |||||||||||||
Position | Point guard | |||||||||||||
Career highlights and awards | ||||||||||||||
Medals
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High school career
Lewis played basketball for Hazel Green High School in Hazel Green, Alabama for three years. As a junior, he averaged 28.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 3.9 steals per game and led his team to the Alabama Class 6A semifinals. Lewis earned first-team All-State honors for his second consecutive season, was a finalist for Alabama Mr. Basketball, and was named Huntsville Region Player of the Year and Alabama Class 6A Player of the Year.[1] He was originally in the 2019 class but graduated early from high school and reclassified to 2018.[2] On August 10, 2018, Lewis committed to Alabama over several major NCAA Division I offers, including from Indiana and Kansas. He was considered a four-star recruit by ESPN and 247Sports.[3]
College career
In his freshman season with Alabama, Lewis, at age 17, was the second-youngest player in NCAA Division I basketball behind Everett Perrot of Pepperdine and was the youngest player to appear in a game. Lewis scored six points in his first career game versus Southern. The following game, he had 21 points against Appalachian State and followed that up with a season-high 24 points against Wichita State.[4] He tied his season-high of 24 points against Georgia in February 2019.[5] Lewis averaged 13.5 points, 2.9 assists, and 2.6 rebounds per game and was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team. However, Alabama struggled and finished 18-16, losing in the first round of the NIT. Lewis entered the transfer portal before new coach Nate Oats convinced him to return.[6]
In his sophomore season opener, Lewis scored a career-high 30 points in an 81–80 loss to Penn.[7] On February 25, 2020, Lewis contributed 29 points, seven rebounds, and four assists in a 80–73 loss to Mississippi State.[8] At the conclusion of the regular season, Lewis was named to the First Team All-SEC.[9] As a sophomore, Lewis averaged 18.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per game.[10] After the season, Lewis declared for the 2020 NBA draft.[11]
National team career
Lewis played for the United States at the 2019 FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Heraklion, Greece. He averaged four points and 1.6 assists per game and helped his team win a gold medal.[12]
Career statistics
GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
College
Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2018–19 | Alabama | 34 | 34 | 31.6 | .433 | .358 | .783 | 2.6 | 2.9 | .8 | .3 | 13.5 |
2019–20 | Alabama | 31 | 31 | 37.6 | .459 | .366 | .802 | 4.8 | 5.2 | 1.8 | .6 | 18.5 |
Career | 65 | 65 | 34.5 | .447 | .362 | .793 | 3.6 | 4.0 | 1.3 | .4 | 15.9 |
References
- Boyette, Daniel (March 20, 2018). "Hazel Green's Kira Lewis stepped up as leader, earns Huntsville top basketball honor". AL.com. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
- "Alabama Men's Basketball Signs Kira Lewis, will Enroll in Classes this Fall". University of Alabama Athletics. August 15, 2018. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
- Daniels, Evan (August 10, 2018). "Kira Lewis commits to Alabama, reclassifies to 2018". 247Sports. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
- Walsh, Christopher (January 22, 2019). "The talk about Kira Lewis Jr. is shifting from his age to his consistency". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
- Casagrande, Michael (April 8, 2019). "Kira Lewis is staying at Alabama after flirting with transfer". Al.com. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- Martin, Tyler (October 25, 2019). "Alabama Will Look to an Older, More Experienced Kira Lewis Jr. for Success Under Nate Oats". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- "Dingle lifts Penn to 81-80 opening win over Alabama". ESPN. Associated Press. November 5, 2019. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- Stephens, Hannah (February 25, 2020). "Alabama loses game, John Petty against Miss State". Roll Tide Wire. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
- "SEC announces 2020 Men's Basketball Awards" (Press release). Southeastern Conference. March 10, 2020. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
- Tsoukalas, Tony. "How to watch: Alabama basketball vs Tennessee in the SEC Tournament". Rivals.com. Retrieved March 22, 2020.
- Potter, Charlie (March 24, 2020). "Alabama's Kira Lewis, John Petty to test NBA draft waters". 247 Sports. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
- Villicana, Paloma (July 8, 2019). "Kira Lewis brings back gold to north Alabama". WAFF. Retrieved December 3, 2019.