Austin Williams Commits to Men’s Basketball

Some good news on the basketball front today as 6’4” combo guard Austin Williams has officially committed to Rutgers University. The Roseland, NJ native is a journeyman, spending his first two seasons at Marist for the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons, then transferring to Hartford. After having to sit out the 2019-2020 season, Williams starred for the Hawks, averaging 14.1 points in 2020-21 and 16.1 in 2021-22. He was named to the All-America East conference team following each season with Hartford. He then transferred to Florida International University last season but did not play a game for the Panthers due to injury. Williams will need a medical redshirt waiver to play for the Knights this fall, pending NCAA approval, which seems likely.

When healthy with Hartford, Williams logged 32 minutes per game in the 2020-21 campaign and 33 minutes in 2021-22. While only shooting 29.4% on threes for his college career, he can finish around the basket, making 56% of his two-point shots and frequently showing off a soft touch around the rim. Willams only shot 65% from the charity stripe for Hartford but he does get to the line, averaging 4.5 free throw attempts per game.

Head coach Pikiell was likely impressed by his willingness to rebound and unselfish play with Hartford - pulling down nearly 5 defensive rebounds and dishing out 2.5 assists per game with the Hawks. Williams stepped up when the games mattered most, averaging 21.3 points and 8.3 rebounds during Hartford’s four-game run through the America East Championship, helping secure the Hawk’s first-ever America East title and punching an automatic bid to the 2021 Tournament.

The 6’4, 200-pound guard adds much-needed size and depth after the backcourt transfers of Cam Spencer and Paul Mulcahy this past offseason. Williams joins grad transfer Noah Fernandes, rising sophomore Derek Simpson, and potential impact true freshman Jamichael Davis in what is shaping up to be a very promising backcourt.

Rutgers has now filled twelve of their 13 scholarships for this season with rumblings that Oskar Palmquist is looking to return to the program. The Knights open play in a little over three months against the Princeton Tigers in the inaugural 2023 Jersey Jam on November 6, 2023, at CURE Insurance Arena in Trenton, N.J.

You can enjoy highlights from Williams’s senior season below.