Boise State Men's Basketball adds ELAC's Williams, Two-Time Player of the Year
MONTEREY PARK, Calif. — Boise State added to their roster East Los Angeles College sophomore Roderick Williams, a 2018 JUCO Basketball Top 100 Player (No. 14) and a back-to-back South Coast Conference North Division Player of the Year recipient.
"Roderick is a fantastic addition to next year's team,” said Boise State head coach Leon Rice on BroncoSports.com. “He is a versatile player with great athleticism who will compliment both our returning and incoming players.”
A scholar-athlete graduate of ELAC, Williams was pursued by other NCAA Division I schools such as all but one of the Pac-12 institutions. The 6-foot-7, 215-pound forward decided to accept a full-ride scholarship to Boise State because he will contribute immediately and, “Because it was a perfect fit for me and my game to be successful at the next level,” said Williams. “All the things I learned with the East Los Angeles College men’s basketball program will transfer over to the next level and I’ll just go from there,” said Williams.
Williams led the Huskies this past year to their fourth South Coast Conference North Division title in the last five years and was named to the All-State Championship Tournament Team as well as the conference MVP. He led the Huskies in scoring averaging 19.4 ppg, 21st best in the state out of more than 1000 men. He hit 60.2 percent from the field (15th best) and he finished with 170 free throws (out-of-220), third most in the state. He scored a season-high 40 points in the championship game of the Cuyamaca Tournament.
In his freshman season, he was named the SCC North Division Co-player of the year, he led the Huskies in scoring with 18.8 ppg connecting on 59.5%, each 16th best in the state.
At Price High School, Williams was named the 2015 John R. Wooden High School Player of the Year for the CIF Los Angeles City Section, Division VI. He earned a 3-star rating by ESPN and the distinction of being regarded by ESPN as the 19th-best player in California's 2015 class.
“Roderick plays the game at a high level and is a great leader on the floor,” said ELAC head basketball coach John Mosley. “One of the things that most coaches like about him is that he has a skill set and a high motor with a passion to win and be successful.”
Williams is looking forward to his move to the next level and isn’t worried about playing in front of large NCAA Division-I crowds or on national TV. “It really doesn’t matter to me because I don’t care who’s there or who’s watching,” said Williams. “The most important thing is to win and learn.”
Williams says basketball carries over to his life on and off the court. “I put myself in successful situations instead of compromising ones, treating everybody with respect on and off the court, doing what I have to do to be successful,” said Williams. “Coach Mosely taught us ‘you don’t make excuses for anything—you just do.’”
“When I play, I’m a different player than probably everyone on the court because I really don’t care about anything and I’m not distracted,” said Williams. “I’m there to just do what I’ve learned and practiced, always pushing for the strength and getting the job done.”
“Roderick Williams is a great leader and will do well in the next level and then the next,” said ELAC assistant men’s basketball coach Francisco “Frankie” Aguilar. “Every time we went through adversity he put the game in perspective and always found a way to help us with that. He’s a great kid and he will do great things in life.”
Williams will pursue a degree majoring is communications with an emphasis in sports broadcasting,
Follow ELAC Athletics at http://athletics.elac.edu/landing/index or on Facebook at ELAC Huskies Athletics (@elachuskiesathletics).
submitted by Tadzio Garcia