Sitting behind the microphone, freshman guard Trey Lewis looked more than comfortable in his role. Coming off a 13-point performance which included going 4-for-6 from beyond the arc, Lewis was a crucial part of the Nittany Lions’ 74-67 victory against Cornell.
After answering a few questions about his play that evening, Lewis smiled at the opportunity to comment on Michigan freshman guard Trey Burke.
While Lewis won’t acknowledge it, Thursday night’s Big Ten opening matchup against Michigan will provide Lewis with another chapter in a growing saga between him and fellow Ohioan Burke.
“He’s a great player,” Lewis said with a smile. “We have a history of playing together and against each other, and I’m excited about that.”
Within Lewis’ smile lay a story spanning four years between two of Ohio’s most talented high school teams, with Lewis leading Garfield Heights, and Burke, of Columbus Northland, testing one another for supremacy.
In October 2009, Burke verbally committed to Penn State. The commitment was a bit of a surprise to Ohio natives but short lived, as Burke decommitted in May 2010, switching to Michigan as Penn State struggled to win games.
However, only weeks before the high school season was about to start, Lewis announced his intentions to attend Penn State the following year. Suddenly an already great rivalry pitted a Penn State commit against a former recruit.
As the final stages of the season rolled around, Lewis and Burke were both in contention for Mr. Ohio Basketball, an award NBA players such as LeBron James and O.J Mayo had received. Burke won the award and Lewis was named the runner-up shortly before the playoffs started.
A few weeks later, then-24-1 Garfield Heights took on Columbus Northland in the Ohio High School Athletics Association Final Four, which Northland won, 67-59, despite Lewis’ 33 points. Burke struggled shooting, only scoring 15 points, many of which came from the free-throw line. And that was the final meeting between Lewis and Burke.
Until Thursday.
Certainly, for the Nittany Lions, Thursday’s game marks on the start of a long Big Ten schedule, but for Penn State fans and especially Lewis, it’s a chance to extend a personal, and heated, rivalry.
