With one year of collegiate basketball under her belt, UNC Wilmington’s Alisha Andrews is becoming more comfortable being the go-to-player for the Seahawks this season.

Last spring, the 4-foot-11-inch point guard was named CAA Rookie of the Year and was also placed on the All-Defensive team. Andrews started all 33 games during her freshman campaign, leading the team in assists with five per game and finished averaging 10.8 points per game. She was a catalyst for UNCW throughout their historic 25-win season that ended in the second round of the Women’s NIT.

Now in the middle of her sophomore season, Andrews has had to step up her game in the scoring department. The loss of standouts Brittany Blackwell, Martha White and Kristen Hanzer meant UNCW would need multiple players to contribute more offensively.

“I had to become a scorer, because I’m a pass-first guard,” said Andrews. “But, now I have to score first and do other things to get the team involved. I have to get going for them to get going.”

Andrews leads the team in points (13 ppg), assists (4.9 apg), steals (3 spg) and minutes played (35.7 mpg) this season. She ranks second in the CAA in steals and third in assists. The Seahawks have relied on the Stone Mountain, Ga. product down the stretch in close games all season.

Andrews established a career-high 25 points in a 74-73 win over UNC Charlotte in December, and 21 of those points came in the second half.

The crafty guard also lifted the Seahawks in a 57-56 thriller over VCU, Jan. 19. With 18 seconds remaining, Andrews hit a runner off the glass to give UNCW its final one-point margin of victory.

“Her ability to go to the basket and finish among the trees has really impressed me this year,” said second-year head coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke. “We have a lot of plays where we have the ball in her hands to make plays, not only to score, but to make the players around her better.”

If she keeps up on the pace she is on, Andrews has a chance to break multiple records at UNCW. She is currently fifth in three-pointers made and tied for 12th in assists and steals.

Andrews also has aspirations of being the first player in the history of the women’s basketball program to have her jersey retired. “I want my jersey up there,” said Andrews, referring to the three men’s jerseys already hanging from the rafters in Trask Coliseum. “It would mean the world to me.”

Andrews’ height has always made her a polarizing figure to basketball fans and the media since high school, but her play on the court has superseded any criticism of what some think she can’t do because of her size.

Andrews said her most memorable moment in a UNCW uniform, to this point, was during the Xavier game on Dec. 29. “I crossed a girl over with a simple crossover and made her fall,” said Andrews, smiling while she remembered the moment. “I ended up missing the layup, because I was still laughing about it when I drove to the basket.”

Cooper-Dyke described Andrews as the best point guard in the CAA and one of the top five players overall in the conference. The Hall-of-Famer also didn’t deny the point guard’s potential to play on the professional level.

“I absolutely believe that Alisha has the ability to play at the pro level,” said Cooper-Dyke. “She plays with more spunk, energy, drive and determination than most players play with. That is going to take her wherever she wants to go as a professional player.”

Andrews takes pride in being an unselfish player, with assists and steals being more important to her than scoring points. While getting awards and breaking records sounds great to the shifty floor general, she finds that winning games and making it to the postseason is more valuable to her.

“Hopefully I can be Player of the Year, and I would love for my name to be in the record book,” said Andrews. “But, I just want to win, honestly. If we win, I’m happy.”