Former Missouri women's basketball forward LaDazhia Williams set to play in Final Four with LSU
LaDazhia Williams wants to keep playing college basketball, at least one more game. Both the LSU forward and Tiger coach Kim Mulkey have made that clear throughout the NCAA Tournament.
It’s part of the reason Williams hit the transfer portal in the offseason, leaving Missouri to join Mulkey in Baton Rouge. Now, she’ll get the chance to play in the Final Four on Friday in Dallas.
LSU has had a dominant season, currently sitting at 32-2. The Tigers earned the chance to play their first games of the NCAA Tournament on their home court, something Williams said meant a lot to her in her first and only season in purple and gold.
“I mean, I knew playing for a Hall of Fame coach, we were going to get something done,” Williams said before the Tigers’ Elite Eight matchup. “We work hard every day in practice, and we listen to what she's got to say, and we put in the work. I'm not really too surprised.”
Williams played three seasons at MU prior to joining the Bayou Bengals. She has averaged 9.4 points per game this season, and a career-high in rebounds, with 6.0 boards per game.
After LSU scored a close 66-63 win over Utah, a game where Williams scored 24 points and grabbed six rebounds, she earned lavish praise from Mulkey.
“It's a beautiful shot,” her coach said. “I'd like to take credit for those things, but LaDazhia, this is her only year with me, so I can't take credit for it. I don't know if it goes back to the previous institutions that coached her or high school or summer ball. But her stock is rising. If the WNBA hasn't noticed what she's done in big-time games, then I don't know what they're looking for.”
In that Utah game, Williams, who faced MU earlier this season, scoring six points and grabbing five rebounds, had to step up. LSU star Angel Reese got into foul trouble early, leaving the former Missouri forward as her current team’s primary option.
She put in a season-defining performance, extending her college career by at least one more game.
“I'm the loud, outspoken person and LaDazhia is the quiet assassin,” Reese said of Williams before the Tigers’ second round win against Michigan. “It's a powerful duo. I think it's an advantage to a lot of teams. When I'm off, LaDazhia comes in and steps in, and she has her points — it might not show on the paper, but she does come through and does a lot of great things for this team. We can't win without LaDazhia.”
It’s not going to be an easy route to a championship for Williams and her LSU teammates. In the Final Four, they’ll face Virginia Tech, which made it to the tournament after winning the ACC championship, and beat Ohio State in the Elite Eight.
If they win that game, the Tigers will either take on Iowa, or battle it out in a rematch with the team Williams played her freshman year for, South Carolina, which stood as their only regular-season loss. Championships are never easy though.
And according to her coach, Williams has the mental fortitude that comes in handy in these situations.
"LaDazhia Williams is that senior that doesn't want her season to end,” Mulkey said after LSU won its second round game. “She wanted to get to a Sweet Sixteen. She's just so calm. You know, you never see LaDazhia get rattled. I never see her lose her composure.”
LSU and Virginia Tech are set to tip off at 6 p.m. central time Friday in Dallas, for the first game of the Final Four, which will be aired on ESPN. If they win, the Tigers will play in the national title game at 2:30 p.m. Sunday on ABC.
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Former Missouri forward LaDazhia Williams set for Final Four with LSU
