JUSTIN HARRIS / L’Observateur / January 4, 1999

HAMMOND – To take the step from high school to Division I basketball is a tall task, but to take that step and be expected to be the leaders can be towering.

Southeastern Louisiana University freshman Tamika Williams knew her journey to SLU would not be an easy one.

“I ran two miles everyday on the levee during the summer,” Williams remembered. “I knew I had to get in shape and be tough if I wanted to makeit.”Williams’ 6 a.m. runs have given her the physical endurance to play at SLUbut her understanding of basketball has given her the composure to take the obstacle course of Division I NCAA basketball with the gait of a veteran.

Williams was recruited as an off-guard, a position she learned well at East St. John High School in Reserve. However, after a season ending injuryto Kessa Moore, Williams was asked to play the point and contribute at the two guard spot. This thrust into the spotlight is a welcome challenge tothe freshman.

“It is nice to be getting to play as much as I have been,” Williams remarked. “Coming in I expected to get my two or three minutes in a game,but I did not think I would be playing this much.”The 5-foot-7 true freshman fathoms the demands of being the point and essentially running the floor.

“It’s hard to play the point and be the leader on the court,” Williams explained. “Nobody expects a freshman to come in and play good. It’s hardbecause everyone may think, ‘She is just a freshman. She is just gettingher. She can’t handle it.'”Although Williams may be apprehensive about her leadership position off the court, she knows the importance of it on the court.

“The point guard is the second coach on the floor,” Williams continued.

“You have to pay attention to the coach and let the whole team know what is going on.”Currently, Williams is splitting time with junior college transfer Chassity Cubie, but when she is called on she is productive. Williams isshooting 42 percent from the floor and 50 percent from the 3-point line.

Her cool head and athleticism is getting her more and more playing time each game.

Notwithstanding Williams’ desire to start, she puts the team first.

“It doesn’t matter to me if I start or if I come off the bench,” Williams said. “As long as we are winning and I play my best it really does notmatter.”Williams gets a lot of pressure from her opponents and her coach.

Throughout the game a fan can hear Frank Schneider, SLU’s head girls’ basketball coach, get on to his young protegee.

“Come on freshman! Watch the floor freshman,” Schneider exclaims from the bench.

“He’s tough,” Williams said with an uneasy yet respectful giggle. “My highschool coach was a baby compared to coach Schneider.

“As far as him calling me a freshman all the time, I guess I have to earn my name. When I mess up he calls me freshman, but when I do good hecalls me Tamika. I hope he is calling me Tamika by the end of the season,”Williams said with a warm and hopeful smile.

Williams was recently moved from the Gold team to the Green team – in essence the starting role.

Williams started in the Lady Lions’ loss to McNeese State Monday. She hadsix points, including two clutch 3-pointers, in the Lady Lions’ 59-48 victory over Prairie View earlier this month.

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