Troy, Williams ready for senior night

TROY — During a season spent exhorting his teammates to believe, there’s one thing Troy senior guard Josh Williams can’t: he’s about to play his final home game.

The 5-foot-10 reserve guard from Bascom, Fla., a former Malone High standout, is one of four Trojans who will be honored on Senior Night before Troy plays South Alabama at 7:30 p.m. 

Williams, Mario Telfair, Kenny Ware and Tom Jervis are the seniors of a team that has stunned the Sun Belt Conference.

Troy is 18-11, 13-4. But the Trojans have won 11 of their last 12 games and find themselves just a game behind Western Kentucky in the Eastern Division.
Troy basketball coach Don Maestri said Williams has far more to do with that success than one would imagine by looking at a box score.

“Josh Williams is a big factor in us being where we are,” Maestri said. “He’s a natural leader. His play has helped us, but his leadership has gone beyond the court. And everyone on our team — players and coaches — know that.”

Williams doesn’t start. He averages about 12 minutes a game. His stats are modest, 3.3 points, 1.5 assists and 1.6 rebounds per game. But he’s an invaluable behind-the-scenes guy who helps set the tone for his team.

“He’s a leader. He gives the pregame speeches,” starting point guard Mike Vogler said. “Every game he has something different. It gets you mentally ready to play the game.”

Through early January, not much was happening for the Trojans, who were 2-3 in the league and 7-10 overall.

“Early on, it was looking like, uh-oh, it’s gonna be one of those again,” Williams said. “But during the course of the year, we came closer together and everybody started to believe. That’s one of our key words right now, believe. If you believe, you can do anything. It doesn’t matter what anybody else says, it
only matters how we’re playing.”

Vogler noted the team had to learn to play together.

“We lost four starters last year and it just started clicking,” he said.

The winning streak started with a 94-70 victory at South Alabama.

“The game down there gave our guys confidence that they could play with an outstanding team,” Maestri said.

The Jaguars (17-11, 10-7 SBC) have also found their stride. They come to Troy on a four-game winning streak.
Williams said the “Believe” mantra actually was started by Kenny Ware, “but I stole it.”

“Every time we’d be in the huddle I’d be like, ‘You gotta believe fellas. We can win this game if everybody believes,’ ” Williams said.

As Troy’s winning streak grew, Williams didn’t turn down an opportunity to stress it.

“About two weeks ago, I went and got me two wristbands and wrote ‘Believe’ on them, just to remind guys when they came to the bench or if I was in the game,” he said, “I wanted them to see that. Believe. Every time we’d been in a tough stretch I’d pull that out. Believe. That’s what we do; that’s why we’re here. To believe. That’s served as a motivator for myself and the fellas.”

Williams even admitted he forgot the wristbands for a game. Yep, the loss at Florida International.

“I actually forgot it, man,” he said, grimacing at the omission.

Asked if he teammates got on his case, he said, “No, they didn’t. But I got them for this game. You don’t have to worry about that.”

Of course, Vogler said he didn’t know anything about the forgotten wristbands.

“I’ll have to ask him about that,” he said, cracking a smile.

Ultimately, perhaps that’s been the difference in the Trojans’ turnaround. Team chemistry can’t be forced. Williams said this group is unique.

“I feel like everybody that’s on this team, nobody is worried about himself,” he said. “Everybody’s on the same page. We all want to win, regardless of who is going to do it. As long as you’re a part of the team and you give 100 percent effort, we feel like you’re doing your part. And everybody does that.

“It’s fun to be around them. When you’re playing with people you know and you feel they’ve got your back it makes you play better — so everybody plays better.

“I’ve been on teams where you’ve had cliques or there’s guys you don’t want to hang around with. But everybody hangs out together. We’re just a big family, man.”

But don’t forget the winning.

“Once you’re winning, man, it’s just like the icing on the cake,” Williams said. “It makes it more fun. You can laugh more. You can joke more.”

Maybe a four-year senior like Williams, who has seen his share of tough losses, can appreciate this season more than anyone.

“My senior year, to be honest, I’m blown away. I’m overwhelmed,” Williams said. “Seeing us win 10 games in a row. I heard at one time we were like fourth in the nation with the longest winning streak.

“Little stuff like that, man, that might not seem like much to other people, but it means a lot to me. Over the years we haven’t done anything like that. I came from a high school that won a lot, but to do that at the D-I level, it’s amazing to do something like that.”

He’s not ready for it to end, either.

Asked to name his biggest memory for Senior Night, Williams said, “I want it to be after we win the conference championship. I’ll leave that for No. 1.”