PUEBLO — For every young basketball player growing up, one of their dreams is to play at the division one level in college.
After winning two state titles with Grandview High School, this is exactly what Alisha Davis did.
Alisha went on to play basketball for the University of Northern Colorado In two seasons with the Bears, Alisha had 820 points, 477 rebounds, and 130 blocks.
At the end of her sophomore year, she was named the Big Sky Conference MVP after leading the conference in scoring and rebounding.
Despite having success at the division one level, Alisha hit the transfer portal after her sophomore year and landed with some familiar faces at CSU Pueblo. She joined her former Grandview teammate Tomia Johnson and her dad Tommie Johnson who is the Thunderwolves' head coach.
“I wanted to stay close to my family so I knew I wasn’t leaving Colorado and I just knew so many people who were here. It already felt like family from day one and coming on my visit solidified that.”
Finding a family that she wanted to be a part of was a huge factor in her decision to leave Northern Colorado. However, her decision was more than just basketball-based as she left to pursue her childhood dream of a nursing career.
At Northern Colorado, she felt she was unable to chase that dream and was prepared to give up basketball entirely so she could focus on nursing.
At CSU Pueblo she has been able to do both and has been dominating since joining the Pack. In her first year with the team, she averaged 16.6 points and 7.7 rebounds per game which earned her all-conference and All-American honors.
The following off-season would change her life forever. Alisha Davis became Alisha Little as she married former CSU Pueblo basketball player Malcolm Little and the two would be expecting a baby girl.
While being pregnant with her daughter, Genesis, Alisha redshirted the 2022-2023 season. Although she was excited about the new addition to her family, she feared she was letting down her coaches, teammates, and others who had poured so much into her.
“We had talks with that senior group about all we wanted to accomplish in that upcoming year and just knowing that I wasn’t going to be a part of that was hard.”
Everyone around her made sure that her fear was nothing more than just a thought as her surrounding support was incredible. From her teammates and coaches making sure she still felt a part of the team, to her husband and parents giving her all the pregnancy support she needed.
Returning to the court for the 2023-2024 season after giving birth was one of the best statistical years of Alisha’s career.
She played 33 minutes per game, earned the RMAC defensive player of the year, was named an All-American for the second time, led the conference in five categories, and set five single-season school records.
Alisha says she was able to accomplish all that through the support she received, but the extra motivation came from looking at her daughter.
“Just looking at her and knowing she’s going to be able to look back and see ‘Wow my mom did this’. That definitely gives me that extra push.”
The Colorado Sports Hall of Fame named Alisha as the 2024 Colorado Collegiate Women’s Athlete of the Year.
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