SE: Williams Gaining Confidence in Transition From Volleyball to Basketball
Dec 28, 2017 | Women's Basketball, Sports Extra
By Corbin McGuire
Peyton Williams loves this time of year. School is out of session and, as K-State's only two-sport student-athlete, she only has basketball to focus on.
This leaves Williams plenty of time to be more like a normal college student.
She can burn hours watching television, which she's done lately by watching Game of Thrones and Arrested Development. She's also been able to dig into a few books — three at once, to be exact. One of them is called "The Tall Book: A Celebration of Life from on High," fitting for the 6-foot-4 Wildcat who's been on top of her game recently.
Williams, who wrapped up her first volleyball season in November by earning All-Big 12 Freshman honors, is playing even better on the basketball floor.
A sophomore in basketball, she's averaging 17.0 points and 7.7 rebounds in K-State's last six games. Her last three games have gone as such: 25 points and seven rebounds, 15 points and 10 rebounds, and 21 points and six rebounds. With her latest performance, Williams surpassed her point total for all of last season, when she averaged 3.7 points a game.
"I'm starting to get my conditioning back with basketball, my legs underneath me," she said, as K-State (8-3) begins Big 12 play on Thursday at 7 p.m., with a home battle against No. 6 Baylor (10-1). "If you ask Coach (Chris) Carr, it's still not where it needs to be, but I'm getting to be more confident with it. I'm building my confidence back."
It helps, Williams adds, that her coaches and teammates are constantly reminding her of what she's capable of. Then there's the large factor of simply being around the team more often, allowing her to fully gel with new and old teammates alike.
"That just comes with me being here," she said. "Once you build that confidence with your team as well, it comes full circle back to you."
Conditioning-wise, Williams said volleyball had its beneficial carryovers for basketball. Specifically, she said it's helped areas like blocking shots and grabbing rebounds, where quick vertical bursts are key.
Her statistics definitely would agree.
Williams has blocked 15 shots in 11 games, more than doubling last season's total of six. She has swatted at least one shot away in nine of K-State's 11 games, including six in a row. In terms of rebounding, Williams is grabbing 6.5 per game, nearly double last season's 3.4 average.
"Volleyball is more quick-motion stuff, a lot of lateral movement. On defense it kind of helped me in basketball," Williams said. "But basketball is obviously more long distance, so you have to stick it out for several plays where the ball doesn't get stopped, so that's where it got me (early this season)."
After a freshman season of playing 16.0 minutes a game, Williams has handled an increased role well so far.
The Topeka native played 27.5 minutes a game through K-State's non-conference schedule, only turning the ball over twice in the last five games. She's also shooting 88.9 percent (32-of-36) from the free throw line this season, which ranks fourth in the Big 12 and is nearly a 25 percent increase from her 64.4 percent rate last season.
"I think you see Peyton do more every day. Her footwork is better every day. Her feel, pace, conditioning is better every day," K-State head coach Jeff Mittie said. "She does something a little bit different every day."
Peyton Williams loves this time of year. School is out of session and, as K-State's only two-sport student-athlete, she only has basketball to focus on.
This leaves Williams plenty of time to be more like a normal college student.
She can burn hours watching television, which she's done lately by watching Game of Thrones and Arrested Development. She's also been able to dig into a few books — three at once, to be exact. One of them is called "The Tall Book: A Celebration of Life from on High," fitting for the 6-foot-4 Wildcat who's been on top of her game recently.
Williams, who wrapped up her first volleyball season in November by earning All-Big 12 Freshman honors, is playing even better on the basketball floor.
A sophomore in basketball, she's averaging 17.0 points and 7.7 rebounds in K-State's last six games. Her last three games have gone as such: 25 points and seven rebounds, 15 points and 10 rebounds, and 21 points and six rebounds. With her latest performance, Williams surpassed her point total for all of last season, when she averaged 3.7 points a game.
"I'm starting to get my conditioning back with basketball, my legs underneath me," she said, as K-State (8-3) begins Big 12 play on Thursday at 7 p.m., with a home battle against No. 6 Baylor (10-1). "If you ask Coach (Chris) Carr, it's still not where it needs to be, but I'm getting to be more confident with it. I'm building my confidence back."
It helps, Williams adds, that her coaches and teammates are constantly reminding her of what she's capable of. Then there's the large factor of simply being around the team more often, allowing her to fully gel with new and old teammates alike.
"That just comes with me being here," she said. "Once you build that confidence with your team as well, it comes full circle back to you."
Conditioning-wise, Williams said volleyball had its beneficial carryovers for basketball. Specifically, she said it's helped areas like blocking shots and grabbing rebounds, where quick vertical bursts are key.
Her statistics definitely would agree.
Williams has blocked 15 shots in 11 games, more than doubling last season's total of six. She has swatted at least one shot away in nine of K-State's 11 games, including six in a row. In terms of rebounding, Williams is grabbing 6.5 per game, nearly double last season's 3.4 average.
"Volleyball is more quick-motion stuff, a lot of lateral movement. On defense it kind of helped me in basketball," Williams said. "But basketball is obviously more long distance, so you have to stick it out for several plays where the ball doesn't get stopped, so that's where it got me (early this season)."
After a freshman season of playing 16.0 minutes a game, Williams has handled an increased role well so far.
The Topeka native played 27.5 minutes a game through K-State's non-conference schedule, only turning the ball over twice in the last five games. She's also shooting 88.9 percent (32-of-36) from the free throw line this season, which ranks fourth in the Big 12 and is nearly a 25 percent increase from her 64.4 percent rate last season.
"I think you see Peyton do more every day. Her footwork is better every day. Her feel, pace, conditioning is better every day," K-State head coach Jeff Mittie said. "She does something a little bit different every day."
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's BasketballK-State Women's Basketball | Tess Heal Senior Video
Sunday, February 22
K-State Women's Basketball | Mikayla Parks Senior Video
Sunday, February 22
K-State Women's Basketball | Senior Night Ceremony 2025 - 2026 Season
Sunday, February 22
K-State Women's Basketball | Coach Mittie Press Conference vs Kansas
Sunday, February 22
