Mar 25, 2005
It was all systems go as the Bulldogs' point guard scores 25 points and directs his team to a victory over Tarleton State in the NCAA Division II semifinals.
BY DAVE KOLPACK, Associated Press
GRAND FORKS, N.D. -- Bryant head coach Max Good is inventing new traffic signals for point guard John Williams.
"He's got whatever is more permissive than a green light," Good said last night after Williams scored 25 points in the Bulldogs' 60-55 victory over Tarleton State in the NCAA Division II Elite Eight men's basketball tournament.
Bryant (25-5) advances to the championship for the first time in school history. The Bulldogs will play Virginia Union tomorrow.
Williams, a 6-foot junior guard, has yet to sit down in the tournament, scoring 52 points in two games. He hardly looked tired down the stretch, driving for a clinching basket in the final minute.
"Coach did a good job of running us to death in the preseason," Williams said of his conditioning.
Bryant scored the last 11 points of the first half to take a 29-24 lead. The Texans could only get within two points the rest of the way.
When LaShon Sheffield's 3-pointer with 1:33 left pulled Tarleton within 54-51, Williams came back on the next possession with a pull-up jumper to restore order.
"I play with a lot of freedom," Williams said. "But my teammates do a good job of setting me up."
Several of those passes came from 6-foot-11 Mike Williams, who Good calls a "point center." He also played the entire 40 minutes, finishing with 10 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
"He's really tough and very tall," Tarleton forward David Stephens said of Mike Williams. "Their focus was to keep me from getting offensive rebounds, and they did a good job."
Stephens and Cornell Jones scored 17 points apiece for Tarleton State (25-9). Sheffield added 15 points.
Jones was called on to guard John Williams most of the way.
"A player like that is difficult to defend," Jones said. "I had to get a feel for him, as I had never seen him play before."
The statistics were nearly even. Both teams shot 41 percent from the field and grabbed 33 rebounds. Tarleton had 13 turnovers, one more than Bryant.
"The game tonight is a tough loss," Tarleton coach Lonn Reisman said. "We feel like we played really well, we just didn't shoot the ball well."
BRYANT (60): J. Williams 8-16 3-5 25, Sudlow 0-3 0-0 0, Hammond 2-3 2-2 6, Correia 3-8 2-5 9, M. Williams 5-8 0-0 10, Love 1-1 0-0 2, Ezeokoli 1-1 0-1 3, Burns 1-8 2-2 4, McCarthy 0-3 0-0 0; totals 21-51 9-15 60. TARLETON ST. (55): Sheffield 7-17 0-0 15, Jones 5-14 3-3 17, Atwood 1-4 0-0 3, Gamble 1-5 0-2 2, Stephens 6-8 5-6 17, Johnson 0-0 1-2 1, McWilliams 0-0 0-0 0, R. Williams 0-1 0-0 0; totals 20-49 9-13 55.
Halftime -- B 29-24. 3-pt. goals -- T 6-25 (Sheffield 1-9, Jones 4-12, Atwood 1-4), B 9-25 (J. Williams 6-10, Sudlow 0-1, Hammond 0-1, Correia 1-3, Ezeokoli 1-1, Burns 1-7, McCarthy 0-2). Fouled out -- Correia. Technical foul -- Gamble. Rebs -- T 33 (Gamble 8, Stephens 8), B 33 (M. Williams 7). Assists -- T 10 (Sheffield 4), B 9 (M. Williams 5). Total fouls -- T 16, B 16. A -- 952.
