'The true definition of playing for her teammates'

When Regan Williams first committed to Kansas to play basketball, she set a goal to start for the Jayhawks as a freshman.

The 6-foot-3 forward from Park Hill South High School in Kansas City, Missouri, has done that now — 10 times in 10 tries — and she’s starting to put up numbers that prove just how comfortable she is in the role.

Fresh off of being named the Big 12 Freshman of the Week on Monday following her first career double-double (13 points, 11 rebounds) in a KU win over Wichita State last week, Williams outdid herself with an even bigger double-double during the Jayhawks’ 79-49 win over Kansas City on Wednesday night at Allen Fieldhouse.

Williams finished with 12 points and 16 rebounds, making her the first KU freshman since 2017 to record a double-double in back-to-back games. And it was clear from the jump that this would be a big night.

She scored with ease at the rim in the first quarter – the product of the extra work she’s put in after practice after not finishing so well during KU’s three games in the Virgin Islands last month.

And she grabbed rebounds like they were $100 bills falling from the sky, jumping over, through and around whoever she had to in order to secure the ball.

“I’ll call her a Double-double Queen, just so she can feel it,” KU guard Sania Copeland said of Williams after Wednesday’s victory. “She’s really starting to grow. You can’t tell she’s a freshman right now, and that’s something we love about her.”

While her goal and year of prep school at Link Academy in Branson, Missouri, was all pointed toward the chance to start, KU coach Brandon Schneider said matter-of-factly after Wednesday’s win that Williams was put into that position because the Jayhawks needed her there.

Her athleticism, size and skill gave her a chance. But it’s the intangible things about her game that make her a real weapon.

“She’s just a young player who continues to get better,” Schneider said of Williams on Wednesday night. “Confidence is growing, being recognized with the Big 12 honor, that helps a young player. And she’s just played with a really high motor. She’s playing really hard. And good things happen to people that play that hard.”

It’s funny that Schneider used the phrase “high motor” to describe Williams’ game. Because that was exactly the words she used to describe her own game.

“That’s it,” she told R1S1 Sports after Wednesday’s win. “Those two words.”

For Williams, it always starts with rebounding.

On most nights, she sets her rebounding goal at 10. Before Wednesday’s game, in large part because of her 11 boards the last time out, she bumped that number up to 12.

Those games marked the first two times this season that she has cracked double figures on the glass, and, for the season, she’s now averaging 6.7 rebounds per game.

She’ll probably bump the goal up a tick or two for Sunday’s showdown with 9-2 Penn State, as well, and she said she wasn’t even afraid to push it to 20 if her play dictates that that needs to be done.

“We’ll try,” she said, smiling. “Rebounds is my No. 1. (And hitting those marks) is motivating, but you always feel like you’ve gotta do more. It’s time to achieve new goals.”

Regardless of what the numbers say the rest of the way, Williams already has made a name for herself with her teammates and this program by putting in the work and worrying about the right things.

It’s never about her. She knows she’s not a No. 1 scoring option or the player that opposing teams will scout to stop. But if she can make them regret that when the games are finished, she’ll feel like she did her job and did right by the program’s culture.

“She’s the true definition of playing for her teammates, just the way that she hustles and the energy that she brings,” Nichols said. “When we talk about culture, a lot has to do with playing for each other and I think Regan is a prime example of playing for us.”

Added Copeland: “She knows what she has to do and every day she’s gonna bring it.”