Riquna Williams interviewed on ESPN's SportsCenter
By MIKE BROWN World Sports Writer on Sep 9, 2013, at 3:26 PM Updated on 9/09/13 at 6:57 PM
Tulsa Shock guard Riquna Williams sprints with the ball during a WNBA game at the BOK Center earlier this month. KEVIN PYLE/ For The Tulsa World
Pro W Basketball (WNBA)
9 p.m. Saturday
Basketball Australia manager Tamara Sheppard was in town to meet with Shock officials Thursday and discuss the responsibilities of Australian national players in international competition the next three years.
Riquna Williams said the basket looked as big as “the grand canyon” Sunday when she was setting the WNBA’s single-game scoring record.
Her comments came as part of an ESPN television interview. She spoke by phone during a Monday afternoon SportsCenter segment.
The 5-foot-10 Shock guard went 17-for-28 from the field and 8-for-14 from 3-point range to score 51 points in a 98-65 win at the San Antonio Silver Stars.
She also scored 18 points with seven rebounds in Friday’s loss to the Los Angeles Sparks and was named Western Conference player of the week.
Williams said being interviewed on ESPN was a sign she had “made it” in professional basketball.
“It means everything,” she said. “Coming from a small town (Pahokee, Fla.) and growing up not knowing much about the WNBA and then to finally make it through college and be at the WNBA draft and then to be sitting here in Tulsa and on SportsCenter, like, `Wow,’ I did it. I made it.”
Williams broke the previous league record of 47, set by Phoenix's Diana Taurasi in 2006 and matched by Seattle's Lauren Jackson in 2006.
She said she she took inspiration from former NBA standout Allen Iverson, who also used lighting quickness and extreme shooting range to score points in bunches.
“We’re small, we’re quick, (with a) killer crossover,” she said. “With both know what it means to go out and play hard every night because we’re not the tallest. But one thing I can say about small people, we have the biggest hearts.”
Pro W Basketball (WNBA)
9 p.m. Saturday
Basketball Australia manager Tamara Sheppard was in town to meet with Shock officials Thursday and discuss the responsibilities of Australian national players in international competition the next three years.
