Offseason education helps Rancho Bernardo’s Lindsay Biddle mature into all-around player, team leader – elcajon newson Elcajon News only

Lindsay Biddle wanted to improve her game, so the Rancho Bernardo High School junior joined the Santa Clarita-based Troop West traveling team after last basketball season.

What an education … like jumping from elementary school to an Ivy League college.

A big-time scorer, who averaged 14.9 points over 32 games for Rancho Bernardo last season and has improved to 22.2 through 16 games this season, Biddle wasn’t asked to score for Troop West.

Instead, she learned how to be a leader.

Already confident, the 5-foot-10 forward took that confidence to an even higher level.

Defense, court-awareness, rebounding and ball-handling took on added importance as Troop West only had one player over 6 feet tall.

Biddle also became a road warrior, practicing for three hours every Saturday and Sunday and playing on the Power 24 circuit for what she estimates was upwards of 40 games between March and July. The team traveled Kentucky, Ohio, Florida, Texas and New York.

Troop West’s team of all-stars advanced out of its eight-team bracket before falling in the second round of the Nationals.

“We played everywhere,” Biddle said. “It was hard and exhausting, but it prepared me by allowing me to focus on basketball. Entire weekends were dedicated to basketball. I learned how to adapt and eventually I got into a groove.

“I was a starter off and on because we had a bunch of 5-10 players. When I didn’t start, it just made me work harder to become a starter.

“We had great ball-handling guards, and we learned accountability, everyone picking up everyone else. We were all responsible for every aspect of the game, especially defense.

“All of the forwards chipped in rebounding. We learned how to play to our teammates’ strength. Our teammates’ success was our success. What made it interesting was that I wasn’t expected to score.”

Biddle has shared what she learned with her Broncos teammates.

RB is 14-2 and ranked No. 7 in San Diego and No. 78 in California. The Broncos’ two losses — to No. 5 Cathedral Catholic and 13-3 Grossmont — have come by a total of eight points.

“As a freshman and sophomore, we had seniors who were the leaders. But now it’s different,” Biddle said. “It’s cool that my coach (Kyle Williamson) and teammates have confidence in me. They trust me with the ball. Now I get just as big a kick out of a teammate scoring off my assist as I do scoring myself. It’s a different kind of team and getting (6-3) Abby Lesagonicz back was a big boost.

Williamson said Biddle has vastly improved her game.

“She wasn’t asked to be a leader; she had a role to play,” said Williamson. “But now she’s a captain and a very vocal leader. She knows the way the program expects it to be done, and she has fit that this season. She has evolved in every facet of the game. She’s a double-double machine, and she’s a scoring threat at all three levels — inside, midrange and outside.

“Everybody knows she’s the key, and now she accepts that.”

Biddle isn’t just a basketball junkie. She’s the junior class president and is in charge of school assemblies.

“I try to balance family, friends, school and sports,” said Biddle. “I like being a leader. It’s cool.”

Winning the Palomar League is the Broncos’ goal, but Biddle says playing teams like top-ranked Mission Hills, Poway and Westview make that a league championship challenge.

“We haven’t won a section title since I’ve been here, that would be special,” Biddle said. “Playing in the Palomar League toughens us up for the playoffs. “We really want to go as far as we can in the state playoffs, whatever the division.”