Coahoma Early College High School senior center Thomas Williams Jr. now has more than 1,000 rebounds in his high school career.
Williams Jr. reached the mark with a double-double of 28 points and 10 rebounds in a 65-53 win at home Friday against district opponent Amanda Elzy. He collected his 1,000th rebound on defense after three missed shots. He was fouled when collecting the rebound, but missed the bonus shot from the free throw line.
Williams Jr. said he could have collected his 1,000th rebound the previous game, but he wanted to save the moment for senior night. However, during the game, he was all business.
“I wasn’t too much thinking about it,” he said. “I was just trying to get the win.”
Williams Jr.’s father, assistant coach Thomas Williams Sr., was holding up fingers for fans to know how close he was to his 1,000th rebound.
“We kept playing,” Williams Jr. said. “We had to close out the game, so it really wasn’t too much of a thing.”
Williams Jr. was recognized for his achievement at halftime.
“It feels good right now,” he said. “It feels great.”
The Tigers are 22-1 on the season and undefeated in district play. Coach Corney George appreciated Williams Jr.’s contributions to the team.
“He’s a vital part of what we’re doing,” George said. “He does his job, he gets on the glass. Not only does he rebound, he scores for us, too. He’s a vital part to what we’re accomplishing this year.”
Williams Jr. is averaging a double-double of 14.3 points and 10.9 rebounds per game on the season.
“He might get it out,” George said. “He sometimes pushes it up himself. He can do multiple things.”
Williams Jr. said his best game was when he scored 20 points and collected 20 rebounds as a junior against Clarksdale High School in CHS’s holiday tournament.
He praised the contributions of those around him.
“My teammates, they do a lot of hard work, so I’ve got to find me an aspect of the game where I could help them out for their hard work,” he said.
Williams Jr. has grown up in Friars Point. He got his start playing basketball for coach Terrance Done at Friars Point Elementary School.
During the time he played for Coahoma County Junior High School, Williams Jr. recognized his ability on the boards thanks to coach Derrick Moore.
“When I first came to him, he got me into it,” Williams Jr. said. “He told me that was one of my main roles on the team, rebounding, and finishing under the basket.”
Williams Jr. continued that path of rebounding playing for coach Edward Thomas his first two years of high school and George as an upperclassman.
His focus remained the same through high school, but his height did not. He was 6 feet, 1 inch as a freshman. He is now 6-4.
“If affected it a lot,” said Williams Jr. of growing three inches. “Once teams started realizing that I was getting a lot of rebounds, one of their goals was to stop me from getting rebounds. They think it will slow the team down altogether.”
Williams Jr. is used to playing teams in Coahoma County and around the Delta, but the Tigers will have to prepare for other opponents throughout the state as they attempt to make a championship run.
“I think it will be really tough, but we’ll adjust to it,” Williams Jr. said.
Williams Jr. hopes to finish his high school career with at least 1,100 rebounds.
He has offers to play college basketball from Emory University in Oxford, Ga., Coahoma Community College and Holmes Community College. He plans to make a decision about his future in late February or early March.
