No. 12 – LSU Tigers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Position | Point guard / shooting guard | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
League | Southeastern Conference | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | July 8, 2005 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Nationality | American | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Listed height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Career information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
High school | Parkway (Bossier City, Louisiana) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
College | LSU (2023–present) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medals
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Mikaylah Williams (born July 8, 2005) is an American college basketball player for the LSU Tigers of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
High school career
Williams played basketball for Parkway High School in Bossier City, Louisiana. She also competed in softball and track and field during high school. In her junior basketball season, she earned Louisiana Miss Basketball and Louisiana Gatorade Player of the Year honors after helping her team reach the Class 5A state title game.[1] As a senior, Williams led Parkway to the non-select Division I state championship, leaving as the school's all-time leading scorer. She was named Morgan Wootten National Player of the Year and repeated as Louisiana Miss Basketball and Louisiana Gatorade Player of the Year.[2][3][4] Williams played in the McDonald's All-American Game and the Nike Hoop Summit.[5]
Recruiting
In middle school, Williams committed to play college softball for Louisiana and received basketball scholarship offers from LSU, Ole Miss and Arkansas.[6] By the end of high school, she was considered a five-star recruit and the number two player in her class by ESPN.[7] On June 24, 2022, Williams committed to play college basketball for LSU over offers from Ole Miss, Baylor, Duke and Texas A&M.[8]
College career
Freshman season
On November 6, 2023, Williams made her debut for LSU, scoring 17 points in a 92–78 loss to Colorado.[9] On November 14, she scored 42 points, breaking the program single-game freshman record, in a 109–79 win over Kent State. It was the highest-scoring performance by an LSU player since Cornelia Gayden in 1996.[10] At the end of the regular season, Williams was named the SEC Freshman of the Year and into the SEC All-Freshman Team.[11]
National team career
Williams played for the United States at the 2022 FIBA Under-17 Women's Basketball World Cup in Hungary. She averaged 8.1 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.1 assists, helping her team win the gold medal.[12]
In 3x3 basketball, Williams led the United States to three gold medals at the FIBA 3x3 U18 World Cup, being named MVP of each tournament from 2021 to 2023.[13] She was named USA Basketball 3x3 Athlete of the Year in 2022[14] and 3x3 Female Athlete of the Year in 2023.[15][a] Williams was named to the 2024 USA U23 3×3 Basketball Team that competed in July 2024 in the FIBA 3×3 U23 Nations League Americas Conference, a series of qualifying tournaments for the 2024 FIBA 3x3 U23 World Cup.[16] She and the U23 team also participated in 3x3 Exhibition Game at the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game, competing against the USA 3x3 Olympic team. Williams was the best scorer of the U23 team with 5 points in a 16-19 loss.
Career statistics
GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game | RPG | Rebounds per game |
APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game | BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
TO | Turnovers per game | FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
Bold | Career best | ° | League leader |
College
Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2023–24 | LSU | 34 | 33 | 32.0 | 47.1 | 38.0 | 78.0 | 4.9 | 2.9 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 2.4 | 14.5 |
Career | 34 | 33 | 32.0 | 47.1 | 38.0 | 78.0 | 4.9 | 2.9 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 2.4 | 14.5 | |
Statistics retrieved from Sports-Reference.[17] |
Personal life
Williams' parents both played college basketball: her mother, LaTonya, for Northwestern State, and her father, Patrick, for Bossier Parish Community College. Her younger brother, Kaleb, plays basketball and football for Parkway High School as a one star recruit.[6]
References
- ^ Watson, Jimmy (April 16, 2022). "Parkway's Mikaylah Williams is LSWA's Miss Basketball for 2022". Crescent City Sports. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ Watson, Jimmy (January 13, 2023). "LSU signee Mikaylah Williams, nation's top girls basketball prospect, breaks Parkway scoring record". The Times. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
- ^ Watson, Jimmy (April 22, 2023). "How good is LSWA's Miss Basketball, LSU signee Mikaylah Williams? Kim Mulkey explains". The New Orleans Advocate. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
- ^ "Mikaylah Williams Named Louisiana Player of the Year". LSU Athletics. March 8, 2023. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
- ^ Hedges, Russell (April 9, 2023). "High school basketball: Mikaylah Williams leads Team USA to victory in first women's game at Nike Hoop Summit". Bossier Press-Tribune. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ a b Hedges, Russell (June 27, 2019). "Future Parkway freshman excels in athletics and classroom; already a top college prospect, Mikaylah Williams keeping things in perspective". Bossier Press-Tribune. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
- ^ "Mikaylah Williams 2023 High School Girls' Basketball Profile". ESPN. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
- ^ Philippou, Alexa (June 24, 2022). "Mikaylah Williams, No. 1 women's basketball recruit in Class of 2023, commits to LSU". ESPN. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
- ^ Hedges, Russell (November 6, 2023). "Women's college basketball: Former Parkway star Williams shines but No. 1 LSU drops opener to No. 20 Colorado". Bossier Press-Tribune. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
- ^ Higgins, Ron (November 14, 2023). "Mikaylah Williams scores 42 points and No. 7 LSU rolls past Kent State 109-79". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Associated Press. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
- ^ "Reese and Williams Lead Strong SEC Postseason Award Class For LSU". LSU. March 5, 2024. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
- ^ Hedges, Russell (July 17, 2022). "Basketball: Parkway's Mikaylah Williams gets second gold medal as USA wins FIBA U17 Women's World Cup". Bossier Press-Tribune. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ Hedges, Russell (September 5, 2023). "Basketball: Former Parkway star Williams named MVP as USA takes gold in FIBA 3×3 U18 World Cup in Hungary". Bossier Press-Tribune. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ "Mikaylah Williams Named USA Basketball's 3x3 Athlete of the Year". USA Basketball. December 14, 2022. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ "Williams Named USA Basketball 3×3 Female Athlete of the Year". LSU. December 13, 2023. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
- ^ "Mikaylah Williams Named to USA 3×3 U23 Basketball Team". LSU. July 5, 2024. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
- ^ "Mikaylah Williams College Stats". Sports-Reference. Retrieved April 15, 2024.