Williams awarded MEAC player of the week, Rattlers stay hot

Desmond Williams led FAMU to three wins in a row this week, averaging a double double with 23 points 10 rebounds.
Photo credit: Sydne Vigille

 

For the first time this season, senior forward Desmond Williams was named MEAC player of the week.

Desmond Williams led FAMU to three wins in a row this week, averaging a double double with 23 points, 10 rebounds and one blocked shot per game during the three game winning streak.

The Rattlers pulled off what could possibly be the upset of the MEAC season as they took down the Aggies of North Carolina A&T. The Aggies went into the game winning four of their last five and sitting atop the MEAC.

The impressive play by Desmond and his teammates continued Monday night as they beat the South Carolina State Bulldogs and improved their MEAC record to 7-8, good enough for eighth in the MEAC.

Desmond Williams made it a point to end the season strong.

“The season hasn’t gone how we wanted early, but I was always told as a kid, it’s not how you start it’s how you finish.” Williams said.

Finishing strong is exactly what the Rattlers are doing. They have now won four of their last 5 games in MEAC play including another upset win coming last week versus North Carolina Central. Central is currently tied for second in the MEAC.

The play of Williams is a large reason for the winning streak. In the last five games he is averaging 21 points, shooting 48 percent from the field and playing 37 minutes per game. But Williams said he would be remiss not to credit his teammates.

“Marcus (Barham) and Elijah (Mays) have been playing great, really the whole team, when others are able to pick it up, it puts a lot of pressure on the defense. When the team is clicking on all cylinders there is no way they can stop all of us.”

Barham and Mays both had spectacular games against NCAT and South Carolina State with Elijah scoring 25 points on just 15 shots and Barham adding 20.

Those three guys have been shouldering the load as the seniors on the team, with each of them averaging over 35 minutes per game in the last five contests. Head Coach Robert McCullum said it’s on purpose.

“When you get to the end of the season, you want to role with your best guys, especially when they are in rhythm like those three are right now.”

Coach McCullum is making sure to rotate other guys in to keep them engaged should he need them come tournament time. But winning is certainly a priority right now.

With one final regular season game versus Bethune-Cookman University, Desmond and his fellow seniors are looking to stay hot, and end the regular season with a bang.