THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, March 24, 1995 TAG: 9503240583
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY FRANK VEHORN, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines
Jason Williford can attest to the saying that when one door closes, another one opens.
Such was the case in February when Virginia lost team leader Cory Alexander for the second consecutive year to an ankle injury.
Williford was as disappointed as his teammates about facing the remainder of the season without Alexander, but he has made the most of the opportunity it presented him.
The 6-foot-6 senior forward from Richmond returned to a starting role when coach Jeff Jones was forced to restructure the lineup after Alexander's injury on Feb. 8.
While Junior Burrough and Harold Deane have been the out-front guys as Virginia advanced to the NCAA Midwest Regional semifinals, Williford has made significant contributions.
As the Cavaliers held on to finish in a four-way tie for the ACC regular-season championship, Williford averaged 9.2 points and 9.1 rebounds in the final 11 games.
Before moving back into the starting lineup, he was averaging only 4.6 points and 4.8 rebounds.
``I said when Cory went down that we needed other people to step up, and Jason did that in a big way,'' Jones said.
``Inch-for-inch, he is our best rebounder and maybe our smartest player on the court.''
Williford, who had started every game as a sophomore and junior, began the season on a bad ankle that he had injured in preseason.
The injury prevented him from starting the first two games, and he had trouble returning to form when he started the next seven.
He found himself back on the bench in early January when the Cavaliers began conference play.
``That was frustrating and hard to handle,'' Williford recalled. ``But I had to accept that and try to be a leader by coming in off the bench.''
Williford said he talked to Jones about his unhappiness.
``I was getting the minutes, but not starting was very hard to swallow since I had been a starter every game the previous two seasons,'' Williford said.
``Coach Jones told me just to continue doing what I had been doing. I had to suck it up and do what was best for the team. When Cory went out, I made the best of the opportunity I got.''
Williford, though, believes he would have played his way back into the starting lineup even if Alexander had not been injured.
``Going into the second half of the ACC season, the game before Cory got hurt, I told myself that this was my senior year and I had to make the best of it,'' he said.
``From that point on, I was determined to play harder and turn things around.''
Williford is also the one who keeps his teammates focused on their goals.
``If they (teammates) don't listen, I get in their face,'' Williford said. ``I can be tough when I have to.''
When Virginia got off to a dreadful start in their Midwest first-round game against Nicholls State, Williford got in a few faces during intermission.
``He came over to me and told me what I was doing wrong,'' Deane said. ``We all respect what he tells us. He is our coach on the floor.''
Williford describes himself as being ``a student of the game,'' and hopes to begin coaching when his playing career is finished.
``I understand what coach wants to do in certain situations, and I relay that to my teammates,'' he said. ``I am pretty much the coach out there on the floor.''
Williford said the Cavaliers did not play up to their potential in either of their games last week in Dayton.
They had to come from behind to defeat Miami of Ohio in overtime to advance to tonight's semifinal against top-seed Kansas.
``I felt we were prepared to play, and I can't explain why we seemed so lifeless at times, especially on offense,'' Williford said.
``Whatever it was, I hope we got it out of our system in the first and second rounds.''
Williford, a member of one of Virginia's best recruiting classes four years ago, would like to end his career in the Final Four.
``That was something we talked about when we came here, and we still have an opportunity to reach that goal,'' Williford said.
``We have to play better this weekend for that to happen, but I have confidence we can do it.'' ILLUSTRATION: PAUL AIKEN, Staff
Jason Williford averaged 9.1 rebounds in the last 11 games of the
regular season.
by CNB