Decade’s best No. 5: The work never stopped for Green Dragons’ Allen
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When high school basketball season ended the work did not. Sam Allen really was just getting started and spent his offseason toiling away, working out on his own, attending various camps and playing in rugged AAU leagues.
Allen was a relentless worker, but he never looked at basketball as work. This was his passion and it brought him joy. Success comes with a price, but Allen gladly paid it throughout his Lewisburg basketball journey and became the program's greatest player ever.
"We call it work, but it's just a lot of fun," Allen said during his all-state junior season in 2015. "I was in the gym 2-3 hours every day playing AAU with a lot of talented people and that really helped expand my game to be able to drive and shoot and with my explosiveness, too. I love working out like that and it just helps me improve everywhere."
"If he wasn't here working with us, he was up in Williamsport or with his AAU team working out. If there was a gym within 100 miles, Sam Allen was probably in it playing basketball with somebody and working out," former Lewisburg coach John Vaji said that year. "That's a special type of kid. You don't get a chance to coach a kid like that a lot and it's a pleasure to have someone like that who loves the game and who wants to be the best he can be."
Allen became the best he could be and helped his teams do the same. The four-year starting center fueled the greatest four-year run in program history. Lewisburg went 92-13 during that time, reaching states three times in two classifications, capturing two district championships and going a program-best 27-2 in 2016. Along the way, Allen earned second team Class AAA all-state honors as a junior. He was a first-team selection as a senior. The two-time Sun-Gazette Player of the Year also shattered Lewisburg record for career points (1,829) and rebounds (958), adding 224 assists and 112 steals.
A renaissance man, Allen parlayed his high school success into a successful collegiate career at Hobart, becoming a Liberty League All-Academic and being inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. Allen achieved similar academic and basketball success at Lewisburg, setting a new standard for a program loaded with tradition.
"What more can you say about him? He's the all-time leading scorer, he's going to a high academic school," Vaji said in 2016. "He's going to be extremely successful on the floor and when he graduates he will be extremely successful at life."
Allen became an instant success at Lewisburg as a freshman. Expectations were high for the 6-foot-7 newcomer, and Allen exceeded them, playing a major role in Lewisburg winning 22 games and reaching the Class AA state tournament. In just his seventh varsity game, Allen scored a season-high 19 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in a 43-38 win against eventual district finalist Wellsboro. Late in the year, he was battling a painful hip flexor injury, but played his best basketball, recording three double-doubles in five playoff games. Allen scored 15 points, pulled down 12 rebounds and blocked three shots as he went toe-to-toe with Loyalsock first-team all-state center Roger Wilson in the district semifinals.
"Sam was probably playing about 85 percent, but he didn't back down," Vaji said afterward. "He kept on taking it and taking it."
Allen kept giving it to opponents throughout his sophomore year, developing into one of the district's best post players as he was named both the HAC-II and Sun-Gazette first team all-star teams. He averaged 15.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game, again elevating his performance against Lewisburg's strongest opponents. A more polished player now, Allen made 10 of 13 shots against state-ranked Loyalsock, scoring 28 points. He then shined in the district final rematch, helping Lewisburg capture its first district title since 2000. Lewisburg finished 23-5 and Allen was the player who made the Dragons go. The individual honors were nice, but they were secondary in Allen's mission to help Lewisburg become the best.
"When I get out there all I'm worried about is winning. I'm not worried about points or anything," Allen said. "As long as we have more points at the end of the game I'll be happy."
Allen was happy a lot in 2015, helping Lewisburg go 21-3. He became Lewisburg's first all-stater of the 2000s, averaging 21.9 points, 10.4 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.5 steals per game. Allen also scored his 1,000th career point at midseason and Lewisburg topped 20 wins for a third consecutive season.
Allen elevated his game each year at Lewisburg and, in 2015, he became tougher to defend because he developed a good outside game to complement his post moves. Every defense focused on slowing him, but Allen recorded 17 double-doubles, made 59.1% of his shots and developed into an 84% free throw shooter. He could handle the ball and run the court like a guard and he dominated inside. Maybe more importantly, Allen set the tone each day at practice. He was the team's best player, but Allen never viewed himself as anything other than a team player. He went all out and his teammates followed.
"We come into practice and even at 6-7, he's finishing in the top half of the pack with his sprints and stuff like that," Vaji said. "He does a great job leading by example and the other guys feed off him."
That continued in 2016 as Allen put together the greatest individual season Lewisburg ever witnessed, helping spark the best team performance it had ever seen. Unselfish, yet unstoppable at times, Allen torched nearly every defense he encountered, concluding his scholastic career by averaging 20.2 points, 11.3 rebounds, two assists and 1.2 blocks per game. Only four times in 29 games, did Allen not record a double-double and he was the MVP for a team which started 19-0, won both HAC-II and District 4 Class AAA championships and reached the second round of states for the first time in 14 years. Allen could beat opponents physically or mentally and provided a strong foundation for this team to build upon all season.
Allen made one last resounding statement in his final performance. Going against eventual state champion Imhotep and multiple Division I players, Allen scored a game-high 22 points and grabbed nine rebounds, showing the state's best team just how good he was.
"To be part of the winningiest class in history and get the scoring record, it hasn't all sunk in yet," Allen said afterward. "I really enjoyed it and really want to thank my teammates and parents for their support the whole time. It's been a blast."
There was one last honor to receive as Allen became the program's first all-state first-team selection. Those countless hours sure produced something special.
"I was thrilled to be named second team last year, but I'm never satisfied being second best in anything," Allen said. "I was determined to make it to first team this year and to see the hours I put in being recognized is very special to me. I couldn't think of a better way to cap off my career. It's something that I've strived to achieve ever since I started following high school sports growing up."
And what a fun time Allen had achieving it.