Prepare for Madness Part 2

Madi Williams is having fun. The smile on her face is contagious. Her energy has driven Oklahoma throughout her entire career, and she is the kind of teammate every player wants, regardless of sport.

Through her hard work and commitment to the team, Williams has become one of the most electric basketball players in OU history.

“She’s a dog… It’s hard to describe getting to play with somebody like that,” Teammate Taylor Robertson said of the Williams. “We’re a different team with her. She makes everything go. She makes us all better.”

Fun… it’s the word that keeps coming up when talking about not just Williams but this Sooner basketball team. This team is fun. Oklahoma’s high-powered offensive attack has consistently been one of the best in the country and is on pace to be the best in program history.

Against the Kansas Jayhawks in January, Williams continued to surpass major career benchmarks. Williams crossed the 1,500-point mark for her career joining teammate Taylor Robertson who crossed the threshold earlier this season. Williams and Robertson make Oklahoma one of six Division I schools with a pair of 1,500-point scorers, joining Baylor, NC State, Ohio, Rutgers, Texas A&M and Texas Tech.

“Should I give a speech real quick?” Williams joked in the postgame. “I want to thank my mom, god and my teammates for finding me and trusting me to go get a bucket. It’s been great.”

Williams became the 13th player in school history to register 1,500 or more points in her career, joining the likes of Courtney Paris, Stacey Dales, Courtney Robinson and her teammate Taylor Robertson.

“It meant a lot that I could put something down in the books. I’m sure it meant the same to TRob,” Williams said. “It is just great to be able to come out here and set records. Not a lot of people get to do that, to be put down in the books.”

Williams leading the Sooners is nothing new. Since arriving on campus as a 5-star recruit from Ft. Worth, Texas, Williams has consistently shown up on all-conference lists garnering pre- and post-season honors. This year Williams was added to the watch list for the Cheryl Miller Award, given to the nation’s best small forward each season. The senior was a unanimous All-Big 12 First Team selection as a junior and was honored as a unanimous preseason conference selection to open the 2021-22 season. Williams was then named to the Naismith Trophy watch list, awarded annually to the nation’s top collegiate women’s player.

Before her senior season even tipped off, Williams had to deal with something she had never dealt with before… a coaching change. Legendary Sooner Coach Sherri Coale retired, and Jennie Baranczyk took over after an incredible run at Drake.

“Spring was a confusing time for us,” Williams reflected. “We had never experienced a coaching change and I had not either. That was something new for me. I’m always open for new ideas, new faces, new energy, and it is great that Jenny came in with that.

“She’s been great. I didn’t have any expectations for her coming in and she’s been fantastic for me and the girls.”

The numbers have been incredible in the Coach Baranczyk system. Williams has averaged 18.4 points in 2021-22 and a team-high 8.4 re-

bounds. Since the season ending injury to fellow senior Ana Llanusa, Williams is averaging a career 22.4 points and 8.8 rebounds.

But for Baranczyk, it’s the leadership of her senior that really stands out.

“Madi has been the heart and soul of this team,” Baranczyk said. “From a leadership standpoint, she presses a little bit because she’s trying to carry everyone. Then she has these moments in games where she lets it come to her and there is nothing that is going to stop her. It doesn’t matter if it’s a pass, a rebound or a basket, nothing is too big, nothing is too small.”

For Williams, leadership and energy are nothing more than a magnification of her love for basketball.

“I wouldn’t say I have a loud personality within my family and at home,” Williams said. “I like to play basketball with this dog mentality, with this dominating mentality. When you express that it can sometimes intimidate the opponent a little bit. I do it to give energy and confidence to my teammates.”

In a season of personal milestones, Williams and the Sooners accomplished something in Big 12 play that no one on the current roster had experienced. Oklahoma beat Baylor for the first time in over 7 years. Baylor has been the perennial power in the Big 12 and has won the conference 9 of the last ten seasons. The Sooners 83-77 come from behind win over 14th ranked Baylor also represented the first win over a top-15 opponent since 2017.

“It was a great win for us. It was a great confidence boost, but not that we needed it. We’ve got a ton of confidence,” Williams said. “The win against Baylor showed us what we were made of, and we could hang with the big dogs.”

While the home win over Baylor is a signature victory for the Sooners this season, it was not a mission accomplished moment. OU is chasing its first postseason appearance since 2018. The Sooners have also put on a master class in overcoming adversity. Early deficits in games, a season-ending injury to senior star Ana Llanusa, COVID issues and adjusting to a new coaching staff, the Sooners have continued to forge ahead to win games in the face of consistent challenges.

Williams has a simple method to consistently overcome the challenges: be herself.

“I think personally, that comes from the person I am,” Williams said. “I’m not the type of person who takes things super seriously. That helps with being able to move through adversity. That attitude has radiated onto my teammates.”

The fun continues for OU women’s basketball as the Sooners march towards the post-season. And beyond what she has done on the court, the leadership and entertainment that Williams has provided, she has helped

make the Sooners a legit contender as the post-season approaches.

“The chemistry that we have on and off the court is fantastic,” Williams said. “Even when we aren’t playing our best basketball, we have confidence in each other. It’s been great to highlight the talent we have and the work we put in over the preseason. To come out and prove people wrong and show ourselves what we’re made of.”

In a word, Madi Williams is special. And this season, Williams has been better than ever to help launch a new era in OU women’s basketball.

“It’s meant a lot to be able to be here through thick and thin,” Williams said. “To fight with these girls and to learn the things that we’ve learned. It’s great to be a Sooner.”-BSM