Marquette freshman Laniah Davis knows only one approach to playing.
Regardless of Davis’ age, it has always been the same.
“I don’t like losing,” she said. “That mindset, it makes me want to win — go hard for my team so we have the best chance of winning.”
From the outset, Blazers coach Katie Collignon has seen that edge from the 5-foot-7 guard.
“She’s trying to win every drill, and I love that,” Collignon said. “That’s what all of our coaches are. We’re all that way. It’s great to have that type of player on your team. Niah’s just a competitor — 100% a competitor. She wants to win at anything.
“She came right away this summer, and it was like she was going to go 100% every play, every possession. She wants to win. That’s huge to have on your team. We were kind of lacking that a little bit even last year. She was able to bring that energy on offense and on defense, and that really resonates with the other girls. Being a freshman, not coming in and playing scared, it’s huge. But that’s just who she is.”
Davis was averaging team highs of 17.9 points and 2.9 steals to go along with 5.3 rebounds before Marquette (10-7) beat Trinity Greenlawn on Thursday.
But she shrugged when asked if she thought she would be succeeding to this level.
“I never really doubt myself,” Davis said. “But a lot of things are new, a lot of surprises.”
What kind of surprises?
“Getting 30 points a couple of games, being able to help my team out with wins and close losses,” she said.
Davis has produced similarly — exceeding the numbers, really — to standout guard Ana Blakely last season as a senior.
“When she walked in over the summer and started playing, it was, like, ‘OK,'” Collignon said of Davis. “Two of the girls knew her from AAU, and they were excited about her. They said she might be coming, and I was like, ‘Great. That’s wonderful.’
“We lost a big chunk of scoring with Ana, that combo guard who can score and play that pressure defense. (Davis) was able to walk right in and fill that role, which was huge.”
Although Davis communicates well on the court, she tends to be “introverted” off of it, Collignon said, and “lets her game do the talking.”
Davis’ all-around skills and demeanor belie her youth.
“She can dominate the floor on both ends,” Collignon said. “She has a great frame for a basketball player, and she’s one of the strongest kids I’ve ever had — as a freshman. Her takes to the basket come with a lot of power and explosion. She’s a great rebounder. And, defensively, she just gets after it. She does a really good job of being aggressive on the ball, and she sees where she can jump the gaps.
“She’s really improved on her pull-up jumper and 3-point shot. That’s really what’s coming around. Her first few games, everything was to the rim, which was wonderful. But teams were starting to realize that, so she had to adapt her game, and she’s done a really good job of making those adjustments and still making a huge impact on both ends of the floor.”
Davis, who attended Michigan City elementary and middle schools, started playing competitively in fifth grade. She has the potential to play for many years to come.
Collignon, who was an assistant at Valparaiso University and was a standout point guard at Ferris State, wouldn’t be surprised if Davis landed at a Division I program when the time arrives.
“She has a huge ceiling,” Collignon said. “To have that kind of power and explosiveness, it’s almost unteachable. This kid can play, she can flat-out play. Things you try to teach as freshmen in college, even seniors in college, she does them naturally. That’s insane.
“She has those intangibles. You can teach someone how to play a certain defense or offense. But to have a nose for the ball, to get to the rim, to rebound like that, just to be aggressive, those are unteachable things and so valuable at the next level.”
Davis hopes to propel Marquette to levels it hasn’t reached in recent seasons. With a roster largely populated by underclassmen, the Blazers should be sectional contenders, having not won a title since earning back-to-back Class 1A state championships in 2018 and 2019.
“We’re all still very young, but it’s all coming together,” Davis said. “There’s good chemistry. We’re learning what we have to do.
“I just want to help the team get better. We’re learning the things we need to work on and working on them. I’m just looking forward to building with my teammates, being able to make a name for ourselves.”
Collignon related one of the first things Davis uttered after posting 23 points, seven rebounds, four assists and five steals in her debut against Boone Grove.
“‘I could’ve passed it more,'” Collignon said with a laugh. “Her parents taught her to be humble. She’s just that team player.”
