Judging a basketball player by his or her statistics is often a risky proposition. In the case of Alyssa Thomas, however, numbers really do tell an accurate story.
Thomas, the Maryland-bound small forward from Central Dauphin High in Harrisburg, Pa., finished her four-year varsity career as the school's all-time leading scorer with 2,291 points. She also recorded 1,390 rebounds, 452 assists and 372 steals over her career, leaving a lasting legacy that Rams coach Bill Wolf will never forget.
"Anytime you have a player of her ability, just the biggest thing I've always said about Alyssa is that great players make their teammates better. And that's going to be the thing I'll miss most about her," Wolf said. "You have somebody like her on the court that could elevate the play of her teammates. Not only was she a great athlete herself, but she made her teammates better. When you have kids like that, they're hard to replace."
Four years ago, Thomas stepped right into the Rams' lineup as a wide-eyed freshman. She showed plenty of promise, finishing the year with 278 points, 225 rebounds, 101 assists and 85 steals. As a senior, the 6-foot-1 Thomas had upped those numbers to 777 points, 409 rebounds, 108 assists and 69 steals, good for averages of 24.3 points, 12.8 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 2.2 steals."If you take a look at her stats, starting her freshman year and then finishing up her senior year, you just see a continual improvement," Wolf said. "The biggest difference is that for one, she ended up getting stronger. Getting stronger, again, helps her rebounding. So her rebounding continues to improve. Her last year here, I think she averaged 13 rebounds a game. But as well as just her overall strength [being] an improvement and her rebounding, was her outside shooting ability.
"Pretty much as a freshman, she just got most of her points in transition or around the basket. But each year, she continued to improve on her outside shot to the point now that she can shoot the 3, which I don't even think she attempted to do her freshman year. ... Rebounding, her defense, really again, she improved especially from junior to senior year, to the point where her senior year, she regularly guarded the best offensive player on the other team. We did that as much as we could. So really defensively, she has improved as well. She just continues to improve in all facets of her game."
Thomas' scoring, rebounding and outside shooting were instrumental in the Rams' run to a Mid-Penn league championship, the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association District 3 title, and a semifinal appearance in the state tournament. In a quarterfinal win over Cheltenham, Thomas turned in arguably the best performance of her high school career.
"She scored 40 points against Cheltenham, the No. 2 team in the state at the time. She had 40 points and 23 rebounds," Wolf said. "... She just stepped up her numbers in the playoffs. I mean, she was averaging 30 points a game. Her ability to step up in the big games was real important."
Thomas, a Parade and ESPNU All-American, will join a young Maryland team this fall that eyes a return to the NCAA tournament after a one-year absence. How close the Terps come to realizing their goals could depend largely on the success of the highly touted 2010 recruiting class. Thomas, in particular, will be counted on to play a major role next season.
"They're looking at her to be able to step right in and be a starter. They're expecting big things for her," Wolf said. "She's a pretty special player because she's so versatile. She can bring the ball up the floor. I think her natural position in college is going to be the 3. But she played point guard for me this year. [She has the] ability to handle the ball, to shoot from the outside, and she's just a force on the boards. [So the Maryland staff is] expecting big things. ... I plan on going to as many games as I possibly can. It'll be fun to watch her."