Indiana University Athletics
Soft-Spoken Monroe Understands Role
1/23/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 18, 2006
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Often seen as the forgotten transfer from Auburn standing in the shadow of the much-publicized Marco Killingsworth, senior point guard Lewis Monroe has provided an improved consistency to the Hoosier offense this season. So far this season, Monroe eclipsed the five-assist mark in four contests. He opened the campaign with a pair of seven-assist efforts against Nicholls State and Florida A&M, while posting six helpers against Indiana State and Ohio State. Meanwhile, Monroe has only turned the ball over seven times in the past six games.
Even though Monroe remains an assist-first guard, he can light up the basket as needed. As the Buckeyes crashed the post to keep Killingsworth in check and rotated to defend IU's dangerous three-point shooters, Monroe took what OSU gave the Hoosiers and went 3-of-7 with a pair of trifectas to record 11 points.
Overall, Monroe is second on the team with 47 assists, compared to just 23 turnovers. He also provides some valuable depth on the boards with 3.5 rebounds per game, which is tied for fifth on the squad. As a team, Indiana has recorded 245 assists with 30 more helpers than turnovers this season.
While Killingsworth may get most of the media attention, Monroe completely understands his role within the offense.
"The attention is always going to go to the leading scorer of the team," Monroe said. "Of course, I am not going to get the most attention. Everyone knows though, that I am doing what I need to do for the team to win. That is how I look at it. I just do my job and he does his. When he gets that attention, I am happy for him."
So far this season, Monroe has been a calming influence for the Hoosiers while running the offense. The 6-5 guard currently owns a 2-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio and always looks to make the extra pass to help his teammates. His role as a court general has helped the Hoosiers to lofty heights in several offensive categories in the NCAA rankings. Indiana currently leads the nation in three-point field goal percentage (47.4 percent) and field goal percentage (53.1 percent). Additionally, the Hoosiers are eighth in the country in three-pointers made and are 20th and 22nd, respectively, in scoring margin and assists per game. Furthermore, Monroe's talent at running an offense has helped sophomore Robert Vaden to a top-ranking in three-point field goal percentage with 53.2 percent.
"(My assist-first mentality) developed at an early age," Monroe said. "Even when I was in high school, I was a big scorer, but the coaches said I looked to pass too much. It is just in me."
Having lived in a variety of places growing up, Monroe came well-prepared to make the transition from Auburn to Indiana. The team-first point guard hailing from Madison, Wis., spent a bulk of his childhood on the move. Basketball, however, remained one of the consistent themes he could hold on to.
"I grew up moving a lot," Monroe said. "I lived in Mississippi. I lived in Detroit. I mainly grew up in Madison, Wis. I was an only child. I just grew up learning how to play basketball on my own. I really didn't have anyone to help me. When I did go to a place where I could learn, I picked it up."
Monroe's nomadic childhood has served him well as he continues to adjust to Bloomington and the basketball-crazy Hoosier fans.
"It has been a very good adjustment," Monroe said "The people here are great. I like the town. Things are also going well on the court. We are doing well basketball-wise. Everything is looking up."
He also enjoys the passion and loyalty of the Hoosier faithful, as Monroe has continually played in front of packed houses at Assembly Hall since donning the Cream and Crimson this season.
"It has been fun," Monroe said. "At Auburn, we had some big games against big teams, but here it is every night."
Monroe also remembers how different his recruiting process felt compared to what many prospects encounter in today's Internet-fueled recruiting frenzy. Monroe's consistent humility shines through in how much he enjoyed not having a lot of recruiting attention as he grew up.
"Nowadays, there are kids having big names when they are in the third grade," Monroe said. "It was a little tougher back then. It was fun growing up and not having to worry about all the pressures of being a fifth-grader with attention. It was just about playing basketball and having fun until you got to high school for recruiting."
