For some college student-athletes, there’s no place like home. That’s what Trinity High School alum Makiyah Williams learned while she spent her first two years playing college basketball at Marquette University.
Upon the completion of her sophomore season, Williams entered the NCAA transfer portal looking for an opportunity to play more regularly. She found a match in a local institution: the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). And she couldn’t be happier about it.
“I just knew I wanted to go somewhere that I could actually get a lot of playing time and show my talent and skillset,” Williams told Wednesday Journal in a phone interview. “I decided to come to UIC; I thought it was a good move for me because the head coach [Ashleen Bracey] had played for the same AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) team that I played for, Chicago Hoops Express. There was already a relationship between [Bracey] and I, and just being able to play in front of my family was a big part of my decision too.”
The move paid immediate dividends for Williams. Last season in her fourth game, she poured in a career-high 28 points and grabbed seven rebounds in UIC’s 87-74 victory over Southeast Missouri State. The next game, Williams scored 22 points as the Flames rolled past Indiana University Indianapolis 79-49. She finished the season averaging 12.9 points and 2.9 rebounds per game.
This season, Williams averages 11.3 points and 3.4 rebounds per game while shooting 84.9 percent from the free-throw line. One of her best efforts came against nationally-ranked Louisiana State University, Dec. 19, at Credit Union One Arena. Although UIC fell 91-73, Williams scored 15 points and went 3-for-6 from three-point range.
“It was a fun experience,” Williams said. [LSU] has a lot of WNBA prospects and some people that were McDonald’s All-Americans. For me, it was a big opportunity to show that I can compete with the best of the best college players.”
Entering this week, UIC is 8-11 overall (5-5 in the Missouri Valley Conference). However, the Flames have won three consecutive games, including a road sweep of Evansville and Indiana State last week, and Williams is optimistic that things are heading in the right direction.
“We’ve lost a lot of games we should’ve won,” she said, “but we’re fighting through the adversity, and that’s been our main focus.”
Williams graduated from Trinity in 2021 and appreciates her time as a Blazer.
“[Trinity] got me out of my comfort zone,” she said. “Middle school basketball isn’t as intense or good as high school basketball. In middle school, I wasn’t told to be a leader or to communicate. But Trinity gave me the opportunity to be a leader and learn how important communication is.”
“That’s something I really harp on with all my players, past and present,” said Trinity coach Kim Coleman. “Communication is the key to life. Having the ability to communicate with your teammates, parents, and loved ones really sets you up for success in life.”
Coleman remembers the constant improvement Williams displayed in her four varsity seasons and saw moments of dominance from her.
“Just a lethal scorer, someone who could score in the lane or from three,” Coleman said. “She went from a freshman who really couldn’t shoot to a senior who became a big gym rat, someone who had the will to better their game.”
Coleman also appreciates the fact that Williams has stayed close to Trinity, helping out with some of the Blazers’ summer camps. Williams also created a dance team that performed at halftime of Trinity’s MLK Showcase game with Plainfield South, Jan. 20.
“We also go to her camp,” she said. “Makiyah started one for her community and we try to support her in any way we possibly can. It’s bigger than basketball; we want the relationships with our kids to be more than the four years we spend together. Makiyah knows Trinity is home.”
Williams is hopeful of getting a shot at playing in the WNBA, saying that playing for the Chicago Sky “in front of my family would be cool.” But for now, she’s focused on helping UIC finish the regular season strongly.
“We need to stay together and work toward our goal of competing for our conference championship,” she said. “Myself, I want to build my character and how I react during hard times.”