100% COTTEN
2/13/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 13, 2005
LIVING LARGE
Wake Forest junior center Eric Williams is living up to his nickname. "Big E" has a big game and a reputation that is growing with each mounting box score.
As the clock wound down in the Deacs' recent 39-point thrashing of ACC foe Florida State, Williams had added another double-double to his resume. He owned the lane against the Seminoles while collecting a career-high 14 rebounds to go along with his 15 points. It marked the fifth time in a six-game stretch and the seventh time this season that Williams recorded double figures in both points and rebounding. He now owns a dozen double-doubles for his career.
At approximately 275 pounds, Williams is a mere shadow of his former self. He admits to being "about 330 pounds" when he got to Winston-Salem. He's also sporting a much shorter haircut this season. And now when he posts up for a low post feed and turns to devour the goal, he's a blur compared to his heavier days both in his decision-making and his ability to get the ball to the rim. His confidence and determination seem to grow with each game. And his numbers are raising eyebrows. Williams'.632 field goal percentage entering the Florida State game was leading the ACC and was sixth nationally.
The number 31 on Williams' jersey stands for the number of rebounds Eric's mom, Debra, once got when she played. She and her son have a friendly wager that he will never achieve the same feat.
Don't bet the mortgage just yet, mom.
QUICK START
Following the Demon Deacons' win over Florida State, Wake was the first team in the ACC to nine wins. Duke was not able to match the Deacs' league record after an overtime loss at Maryland on the same day. And the Deacs will play another league game before both North Carolina and Duke and gain an opportunity to be atop the ACC heap looking down before playing at Duke February 20.
With the win over Florida State, the 2004-05 Deacons became just the second Wake Forest team ever to get to 21-3. James Baldwin's Deacs of 1926-27 were the first, and they finished their season with a 22-3 worksheet. Wake will have to win at Miami to tie that mark.
Regardless of how the Deacs finish the ACC season they are assured of having at least nine league wins in each of Skip Prosser's four seasons on the Wake Forest bench. Wake went 9-7 in Prosser's first season, 13-3 in year number two and 9-7 again last season. The Deacs would have to win out to get to fourteen ACC wins for the first time ever.
The Deacons are closing in on their 90th victory in the Skip Prosser era. At press time Wake was just two wins shy of the 90 victory plateau. The Demon Deacons have made it to that many wins in that short of a span only three times in their history.
TURNABOUT FAIR PLAY
Perhaps the Deacs had grown tired of hearing that in their loss to Florida State at Tallahassee three Seminoles had their career bests for points in a game. As mentioned earlier, Eric Williams pulled down a career high 14 rebounds in the rematch at Joel Coliseum. Point guard Chris Paul forged a new career high with seven steals in the game. And the Deacs also set two season standards. The 39-point win was Wake's biggest to date of the season as was the rebound margin of 22.
