Evans takes on role as point guard
Dana Evans knew she take on a larger role of responsibility in her junior year. The 5-foot-6 guard is Louisville’s leading scorer and was named espnW National Player of the Week after Louisville won all three games at the Paradise Jam tournament, which included a victory over top-ranked Oregon.
With the departure of Asia Durr and Arica Carter from last year’s team, Evans has become the leader in Louisville’s backcourt. She is averaging 19.6 points and 3.4 assists as the Cardinals are 8-0 and ranked second.
“I knew I needed to step my game up, I knew everybody else would step their game us as well,” Evans said. “I think everybody has stepped their game up.”
Evans earned Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Player of the Week and was honored as Paradise Jam Most Valuable Player (MVP). She averaging 21.3 points and shot 47 percent from the field, making 11 3-pointers in Louisville’s three games in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Louisville coach Jeff Walz says Evans has put in the time to become a better basketball player.
“She was in that gym all summer. She has been working on her three. I think she is really starting to grasp the idea of being a point guard,” Walz said.
With a mentality of a scoring guard, Evans has proven her capability as a distributor. She had eight assists against Boise State and finished with six assists in Louisville’s win over Oregon.
Evans averaged 4.3 assists in the Paradise Jam tournament.
“She has taken it now an understanding as a point guard she has to be able to get others involved,” Walz said. “I thought she did a really good job those three games of not only making sure she was a threat to score, but she was also finding her teammates in the right places to score the basketball.”
Evans graded her point guard performance as a “C” because of turnovers. She had four turnovers against UT Arlington and another five against Oklahoma State, but had just two against Oregon.
She watches film to see how she can find teammates for better shots. Evans tries to stay positive as a leader of Louisville’s offense and her two years of experience help.
“I feel more relaxed and comfortable. I let the game come to me,” Evans said. “Coming off the bench was something that kept me motivated, but I think now it’s more of letting the game come to me.”
