Athlete of the Week is Locust Valley's Lindsay Hogan

Lindsay Hogan is a problem. No matter where she is on the floor.

The 6-foot guard/forward combination can handle the ball up top like a point guard but also take a defender inside and dominate the paint like a power forward. There’s seemingly no answer on how to defend her.

As a result, the Locust Valley senior girls basketball player has been creating havoc all over Nassau all winter. She is averaging 21.7 points per game, 6.5 rebounds and seven assists per game this season, including scoring 30 points in a 62-22 victory over East Rockaway Jan. 18. Her final basket was her 1,000th point as she has been named Newsday’s Athlete of the Week.

Hogan, a four-year varsity player, was largely an outside shooter and complementary piece to strong Locust Valley teams in her early seasons. But she maintained her handling skills as she grew into a 6-foot frame and has become virtually unguardable as a result.

"It’s made me a more dynamic player because I’ve been able to score in multiple ways and take my game to the next level," Hogan said. "Smaller guards can’t guard me in the way that I can shoot over them and taller girls can’t guard me because usually they are a little bigger and slower and I can get to the basket and the free-throw line."

Hogan has scored at least 29 points in four games this season. She’s also had three games with at least 10 rebounds, leads the team in assists and plays tough defense.

"She is a total player," coach Michael Guidone said. "She can do anything we need at any time and she really fills that role for us. She can do it all and she does it all for us."

Hogan averaged 24.4 points per game last season, including 30 three-pointers, in an 8-0 season last year as a Newsday All-Long Island selection. She also set a school record with 40 points in a victory over Island Trees last season.

She’s quick to pass that credit back onto her running mates.

"I’ve been lucky to have teammates to get me the ball," Hogan said. "I’ve been able to do it because of my teammates giving me the ball so much."

But Hogan’s achievements go far beyond the individual level. Locust Valley has won its last 44 games. The Falcons went 23-0 in the 2019-20 season before their Long Island Class A championship game was canceled by the COVID-19 pandemic. Hogan, a sophomore at the time, had 12 points and eight rebounds in the county final. Locust Valley is 13-0 this season.

"She’s been an integral part of it," Guidone said. "We don’t get to anywhere near those numbers without her playing at the highest level."

Hogan said the players are trying not to focus on the winning streak, but rather want to build to play their best basketball when the playoffs begin. Locust Valley dropped to Class B because of enrollment numbers and the program is embracing the opportunity to win two county titles in three years in two different classes.

"It’s definitely a great motivation for us," Hogan said. "And not only is that motivating us, having the community supporting us, teachers, coaches, family, they have all been supporting us so much. That win streak has obviously given us some extra motivation to accomplish that goal."