Within the realm of intercollegiate basketball, an athlete's best season typically comes as a senior or perhaps as a junior. Four games still remain for Academy of Art University women's basketball this year, but forward Alisa Griggs has already her sophomore campaign one to remember.

This past Monday, ART U defeated No. 16 Grand Canyon on the Antelopes' home floor and Griggs was right in the middle of everything working hard as she has done throughout her career. Griggs has served as a focal point of the team's success particularly in the Urban Knights' current 2011-12 drive to be the best.

After being picked to finish fifth in the Pacific West Conference standings at the beginning of the year, Academy of Art vaulted to the top by way of a historic nine-game win streak which included four victories in Hawaii. When asked about how it feels to be a part of something so magical this season, Griggs cited the team's progression as the reason for its strength.

“The feeling is incredible,” Griggs said. “We've come so far from the first day we all stepped on the court together until now. Things are always shaky in the beginning, especially for us because we brought in so many new people, but the chemistry of this team is strong. I think we did a good job of coming together, on and off the court, in such a short amount of time.”

When Griggs set foot on the Academy of Art University campus itself for the first time as a freshman last season, she joined an ART U squad fraught with a strong post presence. Learning from veterans of the game such as Jessica Nolan and Verity Peets, Griggs began to grow tremendously over the course of the year. There were the ups and downs any freshman experiences, but it did not take long for her teammates to recognize the maturity she exuded both on and off the court.

“Alisa was voted captain as a sophomore on a team filled with upperclassmen,” head coach LaNay Larson said. “I think this speaks volumes about how people perceive her as a leader. Off the court, she works hard in the classroom and is always going above and beyond with what she is asked to do. On the court, she never takes a day off, her effort and energy at practice and in games is never lacking.”

After amassing six double-doubles by late January, Griggs' seventh feat was extra special. As the Urban Knights looked to make it seven wins in a row on Jan. 30, the sophomore forward came into Kezar Pavilion hungry for success against Dominican. Griggs not only had the double-double by halftime (15 points, 11 rebounds), but she proceeded to tie the PacWest mark for the second-most rebounds in game with a total of 23 boards by the night's end. She topped the previous school record by six rebounds and truly led by example with 21 points as well.

“There are games this year when she has put this team on her back and carried them,” Coach Larson said. “For someone who played a reserve role as a freshman to come in and dominate games a year later is amazing to me. I treat her like I would a senior, on and off the court. She knows my expectations for her are set very high and she always strives to attain the goals we set. I can always hold her accountable and know she will respond.”

When Academy of Art women's basketball went up against a dangerous Dixie State team in St. George, UT this past weekend, Griggs did everything she could to keep the Knights' nine-game win streak alive. The Milwaukie, OR native scored a career-high 26 points and absolutely lived at the free throw line. In that game alone, she made the second-most free throws of any ART U player in a single game (10) and simultaneously shot the program's second-highest field goal percentage (.800) on an impressive 8-of-10 from the floor.

“Honestly, those games are kind of a blur,” Griggs laughed. “I had no idea I had that many rebounds versus Dominican until the game was over. And I think my body went into autopilot mode at Dixie. I just knew that time was running out and we needed points. I always approach every game the same. When I step on the court, it's business time. In the Dixie and Dominican games, I was just able to shut my mind off and take advantage of what the other team was letting me do.”

Beyond the unbelievable performances scoring the basketball and cleaning up the glass, Griggs has been a master of consistency. She has garnered nine PacWest Weekly Top 10 Honor Roll selections including a Player of the Week and five of those honors have come in the past five weeks. She is on the verge of breaking the program record of 10 Weekly Top 10 honors also set by Nolan last year. With all her success, one has to wonder if there is some sort of special routine which makes Griggs so effective on a nightly basis.

“I am so passionate about basketball, and I really just try to go out each time and have fun,” Griggs explained. “I think that I go into games confident in my abilities because I know that I push myself to be better in practices. I focus on what coaches tell me and getting my shot right during warm-ups. It's all about the preparation.”

ART U women's basketball is currently in a dogfight with three other teams for the 2011-12 PacWest Championship and with four home games all that remain for the Knights, Griggs likes her squad's chances.

“The number one goal right now is to win conference,” Griggs said with determination. “It's what we've all talked about and what we have been working for since the beginning of this season. It's so exciting to know that the outcome of this year is going to come down to the wire, and we're right there in the midst of it all!”

Much uncertainty still surrounds which team will rise above the rest in this final stretch, but one thing is definite: When it is all said and done, Alisa Griggs will get to work and be ready to come back for more as a junior.

“It's weird to think about next season, but I can only imagine that the bar will be set even higher than how high we set it this season,” Griggs said. “My goal for next season will probably be centered around being a leader for the new girls coming in and to help get them on board with the way we play as fast as possible.”

“I have never seen a player improve more than her during an offseason,” Coach Larson said. “She worked so hard on her game and conditioning this summer and it showed. She was a whole different person when she showed up in September. Alisa is so coachable and throughout the season has expanded her game in so many ways because she makes the adjustments. The sky is the limit for her as a player because she is such a hard matchup now that she can play on the perimeter and in the paint.”