Triad Sports Weekly
   A Premier Sports Publication

FCD’s Lewis sets Spencer scoring record

 By Sam Davis
Triad Sports Weekly 

            Tyler Lewis wasn’t sure how he would respond to playing again with his Forsyth Country Day teammates after missing six consecutive games prior to the Furies opening round game in the Frank Spencer Classic. Spencer dusted off his game to score a tournament record 104 points to boost his team to a fourth place finish.

            Lewis, a junior, who has committed to play at North Carolina State in 2012, scored 30 points as the Furies opened tournament play with a victory over Winston-Salem Prep in the opening round. Lewis scored 34 points in the Furies’ semifinal loss to Mount Tabor. He came back and scored a season-high 40 points in Forsyth Country Day’s loss to Parkland in the consolation game last Wednesday.

            Lewis said he didn’t know he had broken the record set by Paul, who led West Forsyth to the tournament championship in 2002.

            “It’s a great honor to set a record that was set by Chris Paul,” said the soft-spoken Lewis. “I was just trying to help my team win. I have to give credit to my teammates and my coach - Craig Dawson for being able to set the record.”

            The feat was particularly impressive considering the fact that most teams doubled- and triple-teamed Lewis.

            Lewis, whose brother Colby also played for the Furies and is currently on the roster at UNC-Charlotte, is the lone returning starter on the team at FCD. The Furies advanced to the semifinals of the NCISAA championship, where it lost at the buzzer to Christ School, a national power.

            “It has been a difficult year for us after we lost four starters from last year,” Lewis said. “It has taken some time learning to play with a whole new set of players. We only have two guys on the team who saw playing time last year.”

            It also didn’t help that Lewis rolled an ankle and missed six games in  a row before the start of the tournament.

            “I was really trying to get back into the groove with the players out there on the court,” Lewis said. “We haven’t had a whole lot of time to play together and jell as a unit. That was my biggest concern.”

            Lewis brought averages of 26 points and eight assists into the tournament. After his play in the tournament his scoring averaged now stands at 28.5.

            Dawson said he is looking to develop more depth as the Furies face their PACIS schedule, beginning this week.

            “We have to learn to play together as a unit,” Dawson said. “We have to come together.”

   Lewis, who has been on the varsity basketball team at FCD since he was in the eighth grade, said he feels privileged to play for the Furies and Dawson.

            “Coach Dawson is a role model in my life,” Lewis said. “           He’s a great coach and he has a lot of experience that he can relate to us. He’s been there and he’s played in the ACC and can tell us about those experiences.”

            While Lewis said he looks forward to playing in the ACC with the Wolfpack, he wants to value his time and experiences at FCD.

            “FCD is the only place I want to be right now,” he said. “I have enjoyed playing here and playing with my teammates and enjoying my classmates.