|
Lewis Preston is in his sixth year as an assistant
coach at Notre Dame and his eighth in the collegiate
ranks. Since joining the Irish staff, he has worked
with the Irish post players and been an instrumental
part of the development in this area. Preston also
is a key part of Notre Dame's national recruiting
efforts.
Preston has had the opportunity to work with two
former players currently in the NBA --Troy Murphy
(Golden State Warriors) and Ryan Humphrey (Memphis
Grizzlies). Both were first-round draft picks in
back-to-back seasons as Murphy was the 14th overall
pick in the 2001 NBA Draft, while Humphrey was a
19th selection in 2002. Under his guidance, current
junior Torin Francis has led the Irish in rebounding
in successive seasons and been a member of the BIG
EAST all-rookie team in 2003 and honorable mention
all-conference team in 2004.
The Boones Mill, Va., native joined the Irish men's
basketball program following two seasons as an
assistant on Pete Strickland's staff at Coastal
Carolina, where he oversaw the academic progress and
preseason conditioning of players, assisted in
coaching, organized travel and was involved with
on-campus recruiting.
A 1993 graduate of Virginia Military Institute,
Preston spent four years playing professionally in
Europe. He began his professional career in 1993-94,
playing for Palma Ahn in Wormeldange, Luxembourg. In
his first season, he averaged 25.0 points, 11.0
rebounds and three blocks per game. The following
season (1994-95), he averaged more than 20 points
and 12 rebounds per contest while playing for Tolka
Rovers in Dublin, Ireland. He played for Lahti,
Finland's Lahden Namika Basketball Organization
during the 1995-96 and 1996-97 campaigns, averaging
17.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and two blocked shots.
Preston had an outstanding collegiate career after
playing just one season at Franklin County (Va.)
High School. He began as a walk-on at VMI, but left
as a 1,000-point scorer and a school-record holder
in four categories. The Franklin County, Va., native
scored 1,146 career points, becoming just the 21st
player in school history to top the 1,000-point
plateau. He finished his career 19th on the VMI
scoring list.
As a senior, Preston led the Keydets in scoring
(16.7), rebounding (7.1), field-goal percentage
(.540), free- throw percentage (.800) and blocked
shots (48). During the 1992-93 campaign, Preston
scored in double figures in all but four of VMI's 27
contests and had 20 or more points on seven
occasions. His career high came in '93 against The
Citadel, when he poured in 37 points while adding 15
rebounds. That performance marked the fourth-highest
individual scoring game in school history.
Preston's wrath also was felt by opposing players
trying to score in the paint, as his 6-8 frame
mercilessly rejected shot attempts. He is the
school's record holder in career blocked shots (202)
as he also registered three of the top four blocked
shot seasons in Keydet history, including a
school-record 65 in 1992. Preston also is the
co-holder of the VMI record for blocked shots in a
game, which he set by rejecting seven shot attempts
against Marshall in '92.
Preston was a two-time all-Southern Conference
selection, leading the league in blocked shots twice
and finishing as its second all-time shot-blocking
leader. He concluded his career at the Lexington,
Va., school with averages of 10.6 points and 5.7
rebounds per game. He also shares the VMI record for
field goals in a game (16 vs. Western Carolina in
'92).
Born Oct. 31, 1970, Preston graduated from VMI with
a bachelor's degree in history and a minor in
English literature. He married the former Angela
Sangermano in May of 2001. The couple resides in
Granger, Ind., with their daughters, Alexandra, born
in December of 2002, and Emma, born in January of
2005. |
