MISSOULA — Money Williams put together two of the best back-to-back games in Montana program history last week in the Grizzlies’ wins over UNLV and Cal Poly. The monster week from Money has led to national recognition as the junior guard was named the Lou Henson Award national player of the week, CollegeInsider.com announced Monday.
“This is very, very special,” head coach Travis DeCuire said. “I’m not sure that I’ve been on a staff that has had a national player of the week before. Obviously, a lot plays into that, the numbers that he put up were impressive and a big win on the road always helps. I’m very happy for Money, it’s been a long road to good health, and his game has matured a lot in the last year.”
Williams became the first Grizzly since 2008 to score 30-plus points in back-to-back games when he put up 30 in a road win at UNLV and followed it up with 31 points against Cal Poly. He averaged 30.5 points for the week on 56% shooting from the field and 40% from 3-point range.
The week started with Montana snapping a 21-game road losing streak in the month of November with an upset victory of UNLV. The Grizzlies raced past the Runnin’ Rebels 102-93 behind one of the best offensive performances in program history.
He was the first Griz player ever to score 30 points and record eight assists in the same game.
Williams carried that momentum back home with him in the Grizzlies’ 90-82 win over Cal Poly. He scored 31 points, 23 of which came in the second half as he shot 8-of-11 from the field. It was a complete performance with six assists and four rebounds.
Since halftime at Stanford, Williams has been averaging 16.0 points per half of basketball that he has played. He’s scored 80 points in 86 minutes of action in that time.
Williams and the Grizzlies will play at Texas A&M on Tuesday night looking for the best six-game start to a season since 2005.
