North Carolina State University Athletics
Williams Still Questionable for the ACC Tournament
3/7/2000 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Will he or won't he? It seems as though NC State basketball coach Herb Sendek can't go anywhere without being asked whether Marshall Williams will be available when the Wolfpack meets Virginia in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament Friday night at 7 o'clock.
The 6-4 Williams, who became NC State's defensive stopper off the bench earlier in the season, has been out of action since undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery February 10.
"Marshall may or may not be back," Sendek said. "He hasn't practiced yet. Even if he did come back and give us a few minutes in the tournament, I don't know how effective he would be. He's going to be beginning a long comeback."
The freshman from Milwaukee didn't practice with the team on Tuesday, but he did do some individual work with NC State's Director of Sports Medicine Charlie Rozanski.
"He's just more or less testing the leg to see if he can take that next step," Sendek said.
The next step would be receiving full medical clearance to practice with the team, but Sendek says there are no guarantees.
"I definitely wouldn't put him in the game if he didn't have at least one or two practices under his belt. Even with just one or two practices, that would be a tall order."
Before suffering the knee injury, Williams averaged nearly 20-minutes per game. And though his offensive numbers (5.5 pts, 2.5 rebounds) were modest, his defensive prowess had become a weapon. Williams' ball pressure and defensive versatility were key factors in NC State's early season success. The Wolfpack was 15-5 when he left the rotation.
"His presence is very valuable to us," Sendek said. "And more than that, his capacity to play up to his true potential is even more important. I don't have a good feel yet for whether he'll be ready at all. If he does get the doctors ok, I don't know if a day or two of practice will put him in a position where he can be effective."
