Hometown: San Jose, California

Birthday: December 17, 1984

Year: Sophomore

Position: Guard

Major: Sociology

Dream School: University of Kansas

Favorite Pro Athlete: Gilbert Arenas of the Washington Wizards

Most memorable basketball moment: Defeating the West Valley Vikings last year, who were ranked 4th in California.

De Anza sophomore sensation Xavier Lewis indisputably showed why he is one of the best in Jan. 18 game at West Valley College.

Lewis put up an impressive 27 points, leading all scorers and surpassing his season average of 15.2 points per game by a wide margin.

But despite his standout performance, the De Anza Dons could not overcome West Valley’s offensive attack, falling 88-78 to the Vikings.

Lewis credits much of his success to Head Coach Jason Damjanovic, who has mentored him since his days at Gunderson High School in San Jose.

“He believed in me,” said Lewis, and it has definitely helped to unravel Lewis’s potential as a student athlete. “He has given me a lot of confidence,” Lewis says.

This student-teacher relationship has developed into a solid understanding of each other’s expectations with the years of bonding under their belt.

Coach Damjanovic is most impressed by Lewis’s strides of improvement saying, “[His] maturity level, work ethic [and] classroom effort has risen by leaps and bounds.”

He continues “I think he realizes the opportunities [these qualities] bring up as opposed to being just a great athlete,[but] not a good student. He’s just a really high character kid.”

Lewis deflects his success to other sources such as his coach and teammates, reinforcing Damjanovic’s description of his character.

When asked about his team, Lewis mentioned, “We have good team chemistry, but it could be better. We have a lot of first year guys, so we are getting better with each practice and every game.”

Luis Cardenas is a staff reporter for La Voz.