Lakeland's Luke Anderson finds a new love for basketball in his hometown

LAKELAND, Fla. - Luke Anderson is just flat-out having fun playing college basketball. 

"That's the main reason why you grow up playing as a kid," Anderson said. "You want to enjoy it. You don't want to do it because you're good at it. You want to do it because you love the game."

That wasn't always the case for the Lakeland native and Florida Southern red shirt junior forward.

"It's just a lot. And you can get down when you're not seeing minutes or having success," explains Florida Southern head coach Mike Donnelly. 

Originally committing to play at Iowa State coming out of high school, Anderson would spend just one semester with the Cyclones before transferring closer to home at USF.

That, however, would be in the Spring of 2020. 

"COVID messed up everything that year," Anderson remembers. "Not just for me but for everyone. And it made the situation not as fun."

Luke was in need of a fresh start, again. 

"Honestly, it was just losing the love for the game," Luke remembers thinking. 

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Remembering how much he missed his home state during his first semester in Ames, Iowa, Luke decided, this time, to transfer even closer to home and play down the street from where he played high school basketball. 

"It's weird how life works sometimes because you never know you're going to do that," said Luke. 

Over the last three seasons, the Lakeland native has steadily improved for his hometown school and currently leads the Mocs in scoring, three pointers and minutes played this season. 

"He's the go-to guy right now, and he is playing at an all-American level," Donnelly said. "To see him comfortable, enjoy playing basketball again, and compete at a high level has been great."

While Luke's journey wasn't always easy at times, it is a journey that has led him back home and right to where he was meant to be. 

"I'm a true believer that I'm in Lakeland, Florida for a reason," said Luke. "We're winning games and playing good, so I think that's my purpose of being back in my hometown."

Now, Luke Anderson has a renewed love for both his game and his hometown. 

"Right here is where I'm from and where I belong," said Luke. 

And the joy Luke has playing basketball has one of Lakeland's favorite sons, and the Mocs, heading in the right direction.