'It's just who he is': Sweet 16 effort one of Williams' gutsiest

Arkansas forward Jaylin Williams (10) reacts, Thursday, March 24, 2022 during the first half of the Sweet 16 round of the 2022 NCAA Division 1 Men's Basketball Championship at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif. Check out nwaonline.com/220325Daily/ and nwadg.com/photos for a photo gallery.

SAN FRANCISCO — Arkansas forward Jaylin Williams flashed the big smile Razorbacks fans love early and often during his postgame interview Thursday at Chase Center.

One would have never known he had only minutes earlier wrapped up one of the more physically grueling games of his career. The grin, though, indicated all was right in his world.

Fueled by perceived disrespect from college basketball analysts far and wide, the sophomore finished with yet another double-double — 15 points and 12 rebounds — and pushed Arkansas to within one win of a Final Four berth by taking down the tournament's Goliath, No. 1 overall seed Gonzaga.

“I think we're being disrespected the whole year, so it's just another thing for us,” Williams said. “They gave them an 86% chance to win. We saw that and everything they were saying. We played hard for 40 minutes.

“That's just what we do now.”

In the buildup to the game, Williams spoke to the immense challenges the Bulldogs would present. But he likely couldn’t have foreseen a few of the other obstacles throughout the course of the 74-68 victory.

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After getting the Razorbacks on the board with a driving layup at the 18:26 mark, Williams fell to the floor, took a hit, briefly touched his head then sprinted back to the other end. When Stanley Umude was whistled for a foul seconds later, Williams doubled over, clutching the back of his neck.

Later in the first half came another shot to the head, this one courtesy of Bulldogs forward Drew Timme, who was called for an offensive foul. Timme’s elbow contacted Williams around the temple.

Doubled over again on the baseline, Williams said Friday that the blow stung. But he remained in the game.

“I think he was just tired,” Umude said Friday of Williams taking a few seconds to gather himself during the game. “He was real tired because he works real hard for us and gives 100%. I said, ‘Keep going, focus on your breathing. We need you out there.’ We talked him through it. He is big for us.

“He said he doesn’t take that responsibility (to stay in the game), but I think he knows we’re a better team when he’s on the floor.”

The fact Williams continued to battle when maybe not feeling completely like himself did not come as a surprise to Fort Smith Northside basketball coach Eric Burnett, who won a state championship with the forward on his team. In a nutshell, that is who Williams is, Burnett said.

Williams had 7 points on 3-of-6 shooting and 8 rebounds by halftime. In the second, the gutsy forward recorded 8 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists.

“Jaylin knows how much that team needs him out on the floor,” Burnett said. “Jaylin is going to do whatever it takes to win. Even if he’s just 80-85%, he knows he has to be out there for his team. He’s just so tough mentally.”

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Williams on Thursday limited Gonzaga players to 40% (6 of 15) shooting on two-point attempts. As a team, the Bulldogs made 60.4% of their shots inside the arc this season.

“To be able to guard Timme, he did a great job guarding him. He walked one time when he came up to Jaylin in the paint,” Burnett said. “That tells me that he had an impact and he was a little worried because he played such good defense.

“I don’t think he’s seen anybody play defense like that on him. He struggled against Jaylin. I’ve always said if you’ve got strength then you’ve got confidence. I think Jaylin is playing with a lot of confidence because he’s stronger and can handle those guys out there.

“Timme got a little aggressive, but Jaylin can handle that stuff because he prepares his body for it.”

On top of his box-score stats, he took two more charges against Gonzaga, bringing his season total to 52.

Arkansas guard JD Notae said his favorite part of playing with Williams is knowing that he is always there to cover for him if he gets beat on the perimeter. That rim protection allows Notae to apply tighter pressure high on the floor.

“He’s been phenomenal," Notae said. "Rebounding, making big shots, guarding the the other team’s big man. He’s just been doing it all for us and doing it all year. It’s just who he is.”