Lions’ star on the sideline

Not so long ago, the game of basketball was performance art for Lisa Faulkner.

As a savvy, smooth and talented point guard, the former two-time All-American was NAIA Division I Co-Player of the Year in 2004-05, after earning Golden State Athletic Conference Player of the Year laurels as a junior floor leader at Vanguard University.

Faulkner, the NAIA record holder for assists in a season (385) had always planned on playing professionally overseas, then transitioning into a career in law enforcement.

But when plans to play in Hungary or Romania didn’t come together, she accepted an offer from Lions Coach Russ Davis to work as an assistant last season.

One year later, Faulkner, whom Davis repeatedly referred to as a coach on the floor during her playing days, said she now plans on forging a career on the sideline.

“When I was deciding what to do after I graduated, I felt like it wasn’t God’s plan to leave basketball,” said Faulkner, who has helped the Lions (27-0) retain the No. 1 ranking in NAIA Division I all season as they head into the championship game of the GSAC Tournament tonight at 7:30 against visiting No. 7-ranked Pt. Loma Nazarene (24-6). “I felt a strong desire to stay involved in athletics, whether that was playing or coaching.”

After spending one year on Davis’ staff, Faulkner let go of any plans to play internationally. She reassumed her role coordinating the Lions’ prolific offense and has even stepped in as co-head coach (with fellow assistant John Barney) when Davis missed a handful of games each of the last two seasons.

“The situation here has been a little unique,” said Faulkner, who starred at Oregon City High in Oregon and UC Irvine before transferring to Vanguard for her final two seasons. “Being able to work as a head coach in a few games the last couple years is something I probably would never have had, had I been anywhere else.”

The experience of running the team during games has helped Faulkner realize she wants to become a college head coach.

“If you would have asked me before if I wanted to be a head coach, I would have said, ‘No way,’ ” Faulkner said. “I always thought I just wanted to be an assistant. But with the experience I’ve had here the last two years, I know I eventually want to be a head coach.”

Toward that end, Faulkner plans to leave Vanguard after this season to find a job as an assistant in an Division I or Division II women’s program.

“I have contacted some people and Coach Davis has a lot of connections,” said Faulkner, who would eventually like to return to the NAIA level, ideally as a head coach.

“I think the NAIA is a better fit for me,” Faulkner said. “But now is the time for me to move up [to the NCAA].”

Faulkner said she has much to learn about college coaching.

“I could teach offense just fine, but I’m not ready yet to teach defense the way I want defense to be played,” Faulkner said.

Faulkner also noted that she has not yet fully engaged in recruiting and said there are scores of other responsibilities she has only observed at this point.

“People don’t realize how much time and work go into running a program until you’re on the other side of it,” Faulkner said.

Faulkner said one of the primary pleasures of coaching is the interaction with student-athletes.

“It’s an impressionable time and I want to be a positive influence and be influential in young people’s lives,” Faulkner said. “I know I’ve learned a lot through the coaches I’ve had.”

Davis believes Faulkner will conquer the challenge of coaching, just as she tackled the tasks of becoming a star player.

“She’s just really intelligent,” Davis said. “She sees things before they happen, which is why she was such a good player. She wasn’t the most athletic or the quickest or the tallest, but she was the smartest.”

Another attribute Faulkner brings to the sideline is intensity.

“Lisa isn’t worried about ruffling anyone’s feathers,” Davis said. “When she has something to say, she’s going to say it.”

Faulkner has also become known for her penetrating stare, of which no player aspires to be the focul point.

“I am intense,” she said. “If I have to, I will get on people. I did that as a player and I’m now doing it as a coach.”