Williams brings energy and

experience to Wildcats win

over LuLu Squad

George Edgar

(Sports Writer)

Todd Williams stands out for the Bremerton Wildcats but not in the way one might see. He stands at 5 feet 9 inches tall, and provides a spark off the bench either offensively or defensively when the team needs it.

But he stands out in terms of experience. Where as most of the team is between nineteen and twenty five years old, Williams is 35 years old. A landscaper when he’s not playing basketball, he graduated from Bremerton High in 2006, and has played for the Bremerton Admirals semi-pro team, giving years of experience over the rest of the team.

“He’s an Energizer Bunny,” said Wildcats coach Jim Portune. “He brings energy. He played for the Bremerton Admirals, so he brings experience that a lot of these guys don’t have.”

That experience comes into play when he’s on the court with his fellow Bremerton High alums.

“I’ve always played with them,” Williams said. “They’ve always been together. But its good I get to play with them in this format. We didn’t get to play together because they were behind me. It keeps me young.

He added: “I’m just enjoy the hoopin’. It’s the only thing I got outside of work.”

Williams was planning to play for the Admirals this season, the semi-pro team in a rec league game, but wound up playing for the Wildcats.

“He was going to play for them but me and Deonte (Dixon) recruited him before the game started,” Portune recalled. “We needed another player because we were short.”

Against LuLu Squad in its most recent Bremerton Rec League game, a 124-38 blowout at Sheridan Park Gym, Williams scored 12 points off the bench, and added five assists and five rebounds. Though the game was the typical Wildcats up and down, up tempo game, Williams can bring a change of pace coming off the bench.

“Patience,” Williams replied. “They like to run, they like to go up and down the floor. Sometimes, I like to come in and slow them down, get everybody grouped up and handle it from there.”

Added Portune: “Defensively, he’s strong and quick. He’ll get down on somebody, he’s not afraid to mix it up.”

The recent stretch of games for the Wildcats (20-2 so far this season) will be preparing them for The Rumble At The Ridge, a tournament the weekend of April 29-30 in Port Angeles. Against Emerald Queen Casino on March 29, Williams hit a three-pointer that forced overtime that led to the win at a tournament in Tacoma, as well as being a defensive menace.

“We’re progressing nicely,” Portune pointed out. “This is the first time a Bremerton team, in this new era, has travelled outside of Bremerton.” The Wildcats have lost two games, to Suquamish Tribe and MSL Sheet Metal, but rebounded to beat Suquamish 100-57 on March 15. Williams scored 10 points in that game.

Against Emerald Queen on March 29, Portune said that the Wildcats didn’t play their best for most of the game but found a way to come back to force overtime on Williams’ three-pointer and win it from there.

“Todd was key to hit that three pointer to force overtime, then D’Angelo (Moore) hit the game winner. To beat a college level team on their home floor, that was huge. So now, the question is how will this team do in a tournament. That’s what we’re working for.”

LuLu Squad - 17 15 - 32
Bremerton Wildcas - 62 62 - 124

D. Moore - 41 pts 3 reb 2 ast 4 stl
T. Lancelin - 17 pts 2 reb 3 ast 4 stl
A. Paden - 15 pts 4 reb 2 ast 1 stl 1 blk
T. Williams - 12 pts 5 reb 5 ast 2 stl 1 to
T. Vaoifi - 11 pts 12 reb 6 stl 3 to
K. Taylor - 11 pts 4 reb 2 stl
D. Clarke - 9 pts 5 reb 7 ast
A. Smith - 6 pts 2 reb 5 ast 6 stl

M. Gurske - 4 pts 8 reb 5 ast
K . Retome - 2 pts 3 reb 4 ast 1 stl 1 blk 1 to

George Edgar

(Sports Writer)

edgar7892@yahoo.com