The book on … Tony Williams

Sporting News, The, Dec 20, 1999

Louisville, senior power forward, 6-8/220

More forward than power, Louisville's Tony Williams often is overshadowed by flashier teammates Nate Johnson and Marques Maybin.

But Williams still wants to be the man for the Cardinals, and he has filled that role in the team's 4-2 start. He leads the team in scoring at 19.3 points per game. He has scored 20 or more three times, including a career-high 28 in the Cardinals' 85-62 victory over Georgia. He also is second on the team in assists (20), tied for first in steals (14) and second in rebounding (30).

But particularly impressive has been Williams' 3-point prowess. A career 34 percent 3-point shooter, he has hit 19-of-39 (48.7 percent) through six games, including a perfect 6-of-6 against Georgia.

"Three-point shooting has been one of my strengths ever since high school," says Williams, nephew of former Louisville 1,000-point scorer Keith Williams. "Shooting is an instinct more than anything else. I have the green light to take the shot if I'm open, and I'm going to take it when I can."

Williams started only three times as a sophomore, but he still averaged nine points and five rebounds in 32 games. He started all but two of 30 games last season, averaging 12 points, five rebounds and three assists.

"He's always been a decent shooter, but he certainly has improved," Cardinals coach Denny Crum says. "A lot of that has to do with the confidence level--not only his confidence in himself but my confidence in him."

Williams' leadership is another valuable commodity. Whether he's jumping up and thrusting his fist in the air or providing constructive criticism to a teammate, he does whatever needs to be done to help the Cardinals win.

"Tony's come a long way since he got here," Johnson says. "He's worked harder than just about anybody to make himself a better player, and I think people are going to see just how good he can be this season."

FINAL FOUR THOUGHTS OF THE WEEK

The week's latest turn of events on the way to Indy:

1 Death of the Great Eight. With MJ gone, too, the United Center is retiring one significant hoops force per year. Next up: Bulls' sub Kornel David.

2 Center Stage. At the Great Eight, Haywood, Voskuhl, Chenowith and Woods average .444 shooting, 10.5 points and 3.0 turnovers. Usually, to see something that big and soft, you have to watch Rosie O'Donnell's show.

3 NCAA 2000, How can you tell the new March Madness video games aren't realistic? The control is in your hands, not the referees'.

4 UCLA suspends JaRon Rush, No wonder so many players want to skip college for the pros. The NBA pays J.R. Rider millions to break the rules.

RELATED ARTICLE: recruiting dish

DeShawn Stevenson and Jerome "Buddy" Harper have the potential to become superstars, but below them the senior talent at off-guard drops off somewhat. Harper, a Cincinnati recruit who attended two prep schools before returning home to his high school (Columbia, S.C., Keenan) this fall, reportedly must upgrade his academic credentials to meet NCAA eligibility. ... Although' NC State recruit Scooter Sherrill was able to make it through football season without a serious injury (he's a sensational wide receiver), USC-bound southpaw Desmon Farmer still is recuperating from early summer ACL surgery. Rashid Dunbar (bound for Miami, Fla.) is not fully recovered from serious injuries incurred in a late spring auto accident. Those who remain unsigned are Chicago lefty Cedrick Banks (MVP of the AAU 17-Under National Championship last summer), "sleeper" Tim Ellis, Jemel Davila and points-maker Drew Schifino, who backed off from a verbal commitment to Duquesne. the most under-recruited offguard has been Keith Triplett, who signed with hometown Toledo. Both were spectacular at the 256-team adidas Big Time tourney in July, but few big-time programs have shown interest, perhaps because of academic issues. ... The top 3-point shooters in the group are Ellis Kidd, Marvin Lewis, Matt Lottich and Brett Melton.

Recruiting watch

Brick Oettinger ranks the top 25 senior shooting guard prospects

                                    Town/High school (schools
Rk.   Name                Ht.       considering)

 1.   DeShawn Stevenson   6-5 1/2   Fresno, Calif./Washington Union
                                      (signed with Kansas)
 2.   Jerome Harper       6-6       Columbia, S.C./Keenan (signed
                                      with Cincinnati)
 3.   Scooter Sherrill    6-3       Mount Ulla, N.C./West Rowan
                                      (signed with NC State)
 4.   Desmon Farmer       6-4 1/2   Flint, Mich./Northwestern
                                      (signed with USC)
 5.   Orien Greene        6-5       Gainesville, Fla./Gainesville
                                      (signed with Florida)
 6.   Cedrick Banks       6-3       Chicago/Westinghouse
                                      (Ill.-Chicago, Ball St.,
                                      Loyola-Ill., N. Ill.)
 7.   Keith Triplett      6-3       Toledo/Bowsher (signed with
                                      Toledo)
 8.   Scooter McFadgon    6-5       Memphis/Raleigh-Egypt (signed
                                      with Memphis)
 9.   Billy Richmond      6-5       Memphis/Hamilton (signed with
                                      Vanderbilt)
10.   Matt Lottich        6-4       Winnetka, Ill./New Trier
                                      (signed with Stanford)
11.   Marvin Lewis        6-3 1/2   Rockville, Md./Montrose
                                      Christian (signed with
                                      Georgia Tech)
12.   Dwon Clifton        6-5       High Point, NC./Westchester
                                      Academy (signed with Clemson)
13.   Jimmy Baxter        6-4       St. Petersburg, Fla./Boca Ciega
                                      (signed with South Florida)
14.   Brett Melton        6-4       Mahomet, Ill./Mahomet-Seymour
                                      (signed with Illinois)
15.   Tim Ellis           6-3       Seattle/Rainier Beach
                                      (Washington State, Oregon,
                                      others)
16.   Field Williams      6-2       Houston/Waltrip (signed with
                                      Cincinnati)
 17   JueMichael Young    6-3       Hammond, La./Hammond (signed
                                      with Louisiana State)
18.   Rashid Dunbar       6-3       Bayonne, N.J./Marist (signed
                                      with Miami, Fla.)
19.   Carlos Dixon        6-4 1/2   Fork Union, Va./Fork Union
                                      Milit Aca. (signed with Va.
                                      Tech)
20.   Jemel Davila        6-4       Miami/South Miami (prep
                                      schools, junior college)
21.   Jameel Pugh         6-4       Sacramento/Grant (signed with
                                      Massachusetts)
22.   J.D. Bracy          6-3       Kissimmee, Fla./Osceola (signed
                                      with Florida State)
23.   Ellis Kidd          6-5       Dallas/James Madison (signed
                                      with Oklahoma State)
24.   Drew Schifino       6-3       Pittsburgh/Penn Hills
                                      (Duquesne, Pittsburgh,
                                      Rutgers, W. Va.)
25.   Julius Johnson      6-5       Garfield Heights, Ohio/Garfield
                                      Hght. (signed with Miami,
                                      Ohio)