Former Wolverines crushing it at the next level

Maddax DeVault and Lindsey Davis certainly each left their mark on the Nodaway Valley girls basketball program when they graduated and now they’re doing the same at their respective universities, where they’re continuing to tickle the nylon.

DeVault wrapped up her junior season at Simpson College, where she averaged 7.4 points per game in 14.1 minutes per game. On the season, she shot 39.2% from beyond the arc, making 31 treys. She shot 84.6% at the free throw line on 26 attempts. On defense, she had 26 steals. She also grabbed 28 rebounds.

The Storm averaged 77.7 points per game, going 15-11 on the season and 11-5 in the American Rivers Conference. They lost to Central College, 96-89, in the conference tournament to end their season Tuesday, Feb. 25.

“Our non-conference games were some pretty tough games and we lost some of those, but they were to really good teams. Ultimately that makes you better. That definitely made us stronger as a team,” DeVault said. “Ultimately we grew a lot as a team since the beginning of the year. We’re a pretty young team, so we saw a lot of growth in the young players and the upperclassmen as well. Toward the end of the season we were playing some of the best basketball we had all year.”

DeVault was first off the bench at a shooting guard position behind Atlantic graduate Haley Rasmussen. She looks back on the season and thinks her role on the team became more of a defensive one. Simpson presses each game from start to finish — similar to how Nodaway Valley played while DeVault was in high school — but it is at another level, in terms of speed and intensity.

“From taking more pride in defense, I think my offense just came naturally. It’s not about scoring every night. There are things I feel I contributed, especially on the defensive end — intensity in the press, intensity on defense — and I think that’s something that has changed in my game,” DeVault said. “It takes a lot more effort to make a press work [in college]. You can’t take any plays or any moments off. It’s go, go, go all the time and sprinting from one place to the next. We play a lot of zone but also a lot of man-to-man.”

As a senior who will be in even more of a leadership role next season, after Simpson lost three seniors from this year’s squad, DeVault is ready for that experience. In the meantime, she will compete in track at Simpson. Running the hurdles, sprints and in relays.

“I’m looking forward to keep working to help develop the new freshmen and underclassmen because we have a lot of talent on the team,” DeVault said. “I’m excited to keep working and looking forward to next year.”

Davis completed her freshman season at Upper Iowa University, a Division II institution in Fayette. The Peacocks benefited from Davis at the top level right out of the gates, as she helped them to a 13-14 finish overall and a 10-10 mark in their conference, the Great Lakes Valley Conference.

The former Wolverine started once but played in 27 games this year. She averaged 6.9 points per game, made 12 steals and 24 assists. She shot 31% from 3-point land, making 27 long-range shots on the season. The amount of varsity contributions Davis was able to give to her team was something she was very excited about.

“Freshmen don’t even get playing time, so the first few times he put me in the game to show what I can do, it was nerve racking and the confidence wasn’t there in the beginning,” Davis said. “I feel like my confidence got there, I became more aggressive, more how I would play, and it felt kind of like it was my freshman year in high school again. The seniors I had were really good and I eventually understood my role. I had a lot of fun with it.”

A game against a Division III opponent helped Davis develop some early-season confidence, then the next week, Upper Iowa faced one of the top teams in the GLVC. With her team in foul trouble during that game, Davis was able to go into the game and begin to fill a role, which helped even more.

“I think I had 18 points that game, and I believed I can do it,” Davis said. “That was the moment that I realized I’m on the floor for a reason.”

While a lot of new college players mention the speed and skill being up a notch in college from high school, Davis said the game knowledge of her teammates and the opponents they play are impressive.

“You’re playing teams where everyone on that team was the best on their high school team,” Davis said. “This competition is really fun to play against.”

Davis said her mid-range shot has developed the most for her offensively this season, which has complemented other aspects of her game. It is a shot she has needed to take a lot more in college.

Davis is also dabbling in a Name, Image and Likeness deal where she is selling merchandise that has her name and number on it.

“We’re losing four senior starters so we have a lot of shoes to fill,” Davis said. “We have a lot of underclassmen who got a lot of experience this year so we’re ready to put in the work in the offseason and are ready for next year.”