Inside the Huddle: Dewey's Risks Pay Off In Journey From New England to Illinois

To reach her goal of playing Division-I basketball, Samantha Dewey knew she needed to make a life-changing decision. After spending the first two years of her high-school career in her hometown of Melrose, Massachusetts, she had to choose between closing out the final years close to home or making the move to a prep boarding school about an hour away.

The answer was far from obvious, at least initially. Dewey looked at private high schools while in eighth grade, but she was not quite ready yet. Coming from a very tight-knit family, she was hesitant to move away from the people who have supported her for her whole life, both with basketball and anything else she expressed interest in.

Though she was nervous to transition from living in an environment where her entire support system was under one roof to living over an hour away from her family, Dewey knew transferring to a prep school would help her become the best version of herself, both academically and athletically.

So, that’s what she did, joining Brooks School in North Andover, which featured a basketball team that was coached by her club coach, Ushearnda Stroud. Playing alongside one of her club teammates – Taina Mair, who currently plays at Duke – was another added bonus, and Dewey knew she made the right choice, albeit after much thought and consideration. That decision ultimately led to Dewey's unconventional journey to Illinois.

“I was a little scared, but it was the best decision of my life,” Dewey said. “For my growth and for what I wanted to do, I realized that there wasn't a lot of exposure at Melrose High School with the Division-I coaches that I wanted to see. There's a lot more exposure with college coaches with prep schools in New England.”

Dewey’s basketball journey started long before Brooks. While her parents put her into almost every sport possible, including gymnastics, volleyball, and swimming, she began playing basketball in a local rec league in first grade. Despite the wide range of activities, basketball always stuck out and was the most fun for Dewey, who competed locally until middle school.

It was in sixth grade that Dewey took the next step in her young basketball career by moving to a travel team, United Conquerers, which just so happened to be where Stroud, Dewey’s future high-school coach, first discovered her.

“I remember talking to her parents, and they were like, ‘Who is this lady?’” Stroud said. "I was like, ‘If we put her in the gym, we work with her, we train her, and we teach her how to play basketball and not just run plays, the sky's the limit.’”

Dewey immediately connected with Stroud, and they remained close after they both moved to Mass Rivals, for which Stroud still works. As a middle-schooler, Dewey started to unlock her potential, and she soon realized she might have the drive and talent to eventually play in college.

“AAU is really what took me to the next level. In middle school, I was the biggest and the tallest one there, but when I was playing AAU, I could find people who were my size and my height, and I was playing well against them,” Dewey said. “My AAU coaches helped me a lot and were like, ‘This is something that you can really do.’ They pushed me to do that. At the end of the day, I had a lot of fun doing it. I was like, ‘I have so much fun doing this, and I want to play at the next level.’ That's what pushed me to be better than some of the peers from my town and my area.”

Staying close to home for her first two years of high school, Dewey guided Melrose to back-to-back Sweet 16 appearances in the MIAA Girls Basketball State tournament. Despite the success at her local school, Dewey made the business decision to move to a prep school, Brooks School, where she immediately impacted the program.

Though she arrived as a third-year high-schooler, Dewey determined it would be best to reclassify and spend an extra academic year at Brooks. Given the adjustments to the increased rigor of academics and moving away from home for the first time, she felt like the additional year would be the best decision in the long run.

Despite expressing some initial concerns about reclassifying, she went through with it. Though she would be graduating a year after all of her friends back home, Dewey remained hopeful that it would pay dividends moving forward.

“I did not want to do it at all. I felt like I was being left behind, but I was switching schools so I was already away from my friends from home,” Dewey said. “It was a suggestion made to me, just from the academic standpoint, to reclass and get in the swing of things. The academics staff told me that it was going to be a lot harder, so it was a really good decision. I was very hesitant, but I thought if I'm going into prep school and going all in, I might as well just do the reclassing as well.”

Playing against schools all across New England, Dewey guided her new team to a New England Preparatory School Athletic Council championship in 2020, her first year with the program and the school’s first title in 14 years.

Not only that, but Dewey was named the tournament MVP after posting a 16-point, 15-rebound double-double in the championship game.

“I didn't see that coming at all,” Dewey said of her MVP honors. “My teammates on that team, those were my best friends. Every day at practice and in all the games, it was just, ‘I get to go play basketball with my friends.’ I had so much fun doing that. Tournament MVP, that was just an added bonus. It was cool to get recognized.”

Stroud could not have been more proud of her longtime player, who she had worked with and developed over the last five years to get to the point of being a state champion. After advocating for Dewey to come join her at the prep level to increase her level of competition and visibility to college coaches, Stroud was ecstatic to see that hard work and dedication culminate in a NEPSAC title.

“I didn't put anything into Sam's head in sixth grade; I just saw what could happen if she put in extra time and worked through the growing pains of being a young athlete,” Stroud said. “I'm just proud of her for believing in herself because that's the hardest but the greatest thing that any of us can do, especially as a young person and a young female who's trying to navigate high-level athletics.”

After COVID forced Dewey’s junior campaign to be canceled, Brooks School put together one of its greatest seasons in program history. Going undefeated in the regular season, the team headed into the playoffs as the top-ranked program in the tournament. A 19-point win in the quarterfinals and a 31-point victory in the semifinals led to a berth in the championship game against St. Luke’s School.

Being the top-ranked team in the competition meant Brooks School served as the host for each of its playoff games, including the championship. 

With Brooks trailing by nine points at halftime and down by double digits heading into the fourth quarter, it appeared Brooks School would see its undefeated season come to an end in the final game of the season.

But, a loss was not in the cards for Dewey and company. Tallying seven points in the final period of regulation, she played a big role in forcing overtime before Brooks took home the title with a 76-75 win.

Despite suffering a lower-leg injury in the semifinals due to a blindside hit, Dewey played through the pain and refused to sit out despite showing clear signs of pain throughout the contest.

“At halftime, I looked at her and said, ‘We are going to follow you,’” Stroud said. “People in the NEPSAC still talk about that game. The will that she put her body through was due to the mental preparation over the years. She was like, ‘I put work in, and this is the time for me to show it all.’ That will live with me forever.”

After completing her five-year high-school career, Dewey fulfilled her lifelong dream of becoming a Division-I basketball player, committing to Illinois. Despite announcing her decision to join the Fighting Illini before head coach Shauna Green and her staff came to Champaign, Dewey remained loyal to the Orange and Blue.

Interested in the academics and athletics at Illinois, Dewey always seemed destined to play in the Big Ten, Stroud said, whether it be due to the style of play or the size of the student-athletes. After going to high school about an hour from home, Dewey was used to living away from her family, and the adjustment to being over 1,000 miles away came easier than expected.

“The University of Illinois is a really, really good school, and I liked the the athletic atmosphere,” Dewey said. “I feel like women's basketball gets a lot of exposure. People know about women's basketball here, and I really liked how the athletes supported the other athletes. I chose Illinois for a lot of reasons besides the basketball.”

Stroud, who has trained kids all around the world and seen 57 of her former players compete in college from the Power-5 to Division-III levels, always knew Dewey was capable of big things, even as a middle-schooler. Seeing the current Illini sophomore achieve her dreams did not come as a surprise after years of hard work, dedication, and belief.

“We had real conversations about how hard it was going to be, but Sam said, ‘I know it's gonna be hard. I know it's gonna be a challenge, but I want to continue with that challenge,’” Stroud said. “She was ready to be comfortable in the discomfort of going away to Illinois.”

After joining the Illini in 2022, Dewey is now competing in her second season with the Orange and Blue. Setting her mind at a young age to becoming a Division-I college basketball player, Dewey has given everything she has to the sport.

The journey was a bit unconventional and had many twists and turns along the way, but Dewey has no regrets about how she arrived and earned her place here at Illinois.

“Growing up, being able to go to school, go to basketball, do your homework, be able to sleep a normal amount: all of that really taught me how to balance life a little bit,” Dewey said. “It also taught me a lot of discipline. 

“I get to go and have fun playing basketball, but the game of basketball also taught me you also have to get up and do the things you have to do every single day.”