[2023] Week 1 POTW

[SageBow]

Week 1 POTW

PG William Smith, SR, 4*, A Overall

27 Points, 7 Rebounds, 3 Assists, 1 Steal, 1 Block in a win over West Virginia

26 Points, 6 Rebounds, 1 Assist, 2 Steals in a win over #13 UC Irvine

Sitting here with Senior guard William Smith, winner of the Week 1 CBB Player of the Week award. William, great showing this week, how did it feel on the court to start the season?

It felt great to be out there with the squad again. We were sick to our stomachs after losing out on the big east chip last year alongside an early exit. We are playing smarter and coming harder this year!

The team was ranked coming into the week and stands to improve dramatically. Talk me first through the game against West Virginia that was your season opener

We were firing on all cylinders early but they almost made a comeback. The key is always playing defense and obtaining easy buckets when the game slows down and gets ugly. We had a run where we couldn’t score but made it work

Absolutely, but you've been especially fantastic on both ends. After this win you guys took on #13 UC Irvine and beat them up. Talk us through this upset of highly rated teams

It would be foolish to say rankings don’t matter but coach says you play who is in front of you and anyone can lose to anyone. We keep that in mind and try to dictate the pace of the game. Soon people will know how good we are

The Red Storm was recently selected as the #1 team in America in the latest polls. What does this achievement mean to you?

It means a lot being recognized, but in between the lines the ranking is moot. All that matters is we beat you when the clock is in triple zeros

Thanks for your time William, hope we see you again this season. Before I leave do you have any shout outs?

Shout out to my coach, David Ross, and Gucci Mane!

This article was written with the help of @SyndaKyt