Buena High’s Karisma Lewis living up to her name
Southern California is home to many of the top 2026 high school girls basketball prospects in the country.
In Ventura County no junior is being more heavily recruited than Buena’s Karisma Lewis and, true to her name, she is building her brand with a basketful of skill and a charismatic personality that makes her fun to watch and compelling to listen to.
The 5-foot-10 combo guard can do it all on the court — drive, post up, hit from long range, crash the boards and dish the rock — and college scouts are taking notice.
Lewis, ranked No. 50 in ESPN’s Super 60 for the class of 2026, has already received Division 1 offers from Oregon, Utah, Colorado, Florida, Gonzaga, Mississippi State, Arizona State, Long Beach State, Nevada Las Vegas, Brigham Young, UC San Diego and UC Santa Barbara, yet she keeps her focus where it should be — winning basketball games.
“I’ll be making my decision closer to my senior year,” she said. “I’m grateful to be connecting with such awesome coaches and their programs. I’m watching their current games to see where I can be a future impactful role in their style of play.”
Lewis has poured in 20 or more points 14 times this winter, including 32 against Palisades at the Santa Barbara Tournament of Champions in December. She is averaging 24 points, six rebounds, three steals, two assists and one blocked shot per game and has the Bulldogs climbing in Southern Section polls.
Basketball and being a Bulldog are in the blood for Lewis, whose mom Melissa played at Buena and now works in the College and Career Center at her alma mater, getting to watch her daughter carry on the program’s winning tradition. Along with the genes, however, Lewis has a competitive spirit and a work ethic that exceeds her peers, training three hours a day in the weight room and on the court.
“Yes, she played at Buena under coach Joe Vaughan and graduated in 1999,” Lewis said of her mom, also her biggest supporter. “She put me in basketball when I was 4 on a boys YMCA team and I just grew from there.”
Lewis became comfortable in the spotlight at an early age and that serves her well in hostile gyms where fans are chanting “overrated!”
“At 7 or 8 she wanted to do acting and modeling, she’s always had that strong work ethic, and she did a shoot with H&M down in Cabo,” added Melissa, who goes to all of her daughter’s games. “I said that I need to get you ready to share with the world. I named her Karisma and it’s tough to live up to that but she is.”
Not only are her pivot moves and step-back threes something to see, so to are Karisma’s double pony tail and trademark purple Nike sneakers, which squeak loudly every time she dribbles past her defender on the way to the hoop.
Lewis knows a thing or to about marketing. Yes, her performance on the court speaks volumes, but she also has a weekly podcast on Spotify called “1v1 me with K-Rizz,” where she gives updates on being a typical teenager while under the pressure of becoming a top basketball player.
Guests have included past teammates, current teammates, intense rivals and her mom. It is right up her alley, as she wants to major in sports and broadcasting.
“Me and my mom came up with that idea last year,” said Lewis, who has a 3.5 grade-point average. “Something to highlight local girls basketball as it doesn’t get a lot of attention. I haven’t had time to devote to that lately, so I have to get back to it.”
For someone who turned 17 in September there is much on the plate, but Lewis draws inspiration from George Albanez (her personal trainer since seventh grade) and her autistic brother L.J., who played football at Buena and became the homecoming king of his class.
Does Lewis have aspirations of being homecoming queen?
“No, I’ll stick to basketball,” she said. “That’s what I’m known for.”
Vaughan retired following the 2006-07 campaign as the state’s winningest girls basketball coach, posting a 761-112 record over 32 seasons, winning two state championships, six CIF crowns and 27 Channel League titles, including 11 in a row from 1976 to 1987. Current coach Trevor Payan hopes to make the program a powerhouse again.
“This is my third year at Buena and Karisma is the hardest working player I’ve ever coached,” Payan said. “She knew at a young age that she wanted to be a Bulldog. She’s so versatile, she can finish inside and out. She’s somebody who truly loves playing the game and anyone who meets her and sees her play can see that. She’s had multiple offers and so far this season we’ve had Mississippi state, Gonzaga and TCU coaches at practice to come watch her.”
Lewis started as a freshman, averaged 20 points and nine rebounds and led the team to its first playoff win since 2016. As a sophomore she again averaged 20 points and helped the Bulldogs earn a share of their first league title since 2010 and surpassed the 1,000-point mark in her career during a playoff victory over Holy Martyrs. Buena lost in the next round to Santa Margarita in Division 2A.
Buena (16-3) hosts crosstown rival Ventura (18-1) in the first of two key Channel League meetings Tuesday night. The Cougars are paced by point guard Kailee Staniland, who plays on the same AAU squad as Lewis, who had a season-high 33 points in Saturday’s 65-45 win at San Marcos.
“One thing that stands out about Karisma its her shot creating ability — being able to create space off the dribble and get anywhere on the court that she wants to,” Payan said. “Her teammates love her. They’re all local kids who grew up together in the Buena area and choose to stay at their neighborhood school.”
Last summer Lewis played with other local girls for 805 Family on the Power 24 Circuit while coached by Albanez and Kenny Plummer, traveling to tournaments all over the country.
Payan believes, like the collee coaches who come to see her in action, that Lewis can shine at the next level.
“There’s no doubt in my mind she will succeed,” he said. “Her work ethic on the court matches her work ethic in the classroom. She doesn’t back down from a challenge and is willing to do whatever it takes for the team to be successful.”
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