RIVERDALE, N.Y. – Manhattan College men's basketball head coach Steve Masiello and his staff has added another local product, Brooklyn native Rich Williams, a six-foot-five swingman, in advance of the 2013-14 season.
“Rich brings us an explosive wing who can play multiple positions in our style of play and provides us with another long-range scoring threat,” Masiello stated. “We are very excited to have Rich join our Jasper family.”
Williams comes to Manhattan after a prep year at Vermont Academy in Saxtons River, Vt. He produced 15 points and eight rebounds per game for head coach Jesse Bopp's team last season, earning Class AA all-league honors in the New England Prep School Athletic Council. A Dean's List student at Vermont Academy, Williams is a dynamic two-way player with three-point range and excellent athleticism who can score inside and outside.
Prior to his time at VermontAcademy, Williams starred at Transit TechHigh School in Brooklyn. HoopScoop ranked Williams among the top 20 seniors in New York City after his career at Transit Tech, where he was a teammate of current Jasper and two-time MAAC Defensive Player of the Year Rhamel Brown.
Williams also emerged as a critical cog for the Long Island Lightning AAU team, which he helped lead to the Nike Invitational Finals in the summer of 2012. Williams recently participated in the 2013 Jordan Brand Classic's regional game at Brooklyn's BarclaysCenter.
Along with Williams, 6-foot-10 center Carlton Allen, who hails from Ewing, N.J., and 6-foot point guard Tyler Wilson, a Bronx native, comprise Manhattan College's Class of 2017. The incoming freshmen join a team that returns four starters from the 2012-13 squad that won eight of its last 11 games and advanced to the MAAC Championship game.
