Benjamin H. Williams Jr. (born April 30, 2002) is an American

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

player. He previously played for the

Syracuse Orange The Syracuse Orange are the college athletics in the United States, athletic teams that represent Syracuse University. The school is a member of NCAA Division I and the Atlantic Coast Conference. Until 2013, Syracuse was a member of the Big East ...

of the

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the ACC's eighteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athlet ...

(ACC) from 2021 until his dismissal on February 6, 2024.

High school career

Williams played

junior varsity A varsity team is the highest-level team in a sport or activity representing an educational institution. Varsity teams train to compete against each other during an athletic season or in periodic matches against rival institutions. At High school, ...

basketball for

Riverdale Baptist School Riverdale Baptist School (RBS) is a private Christian school located in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, serving students from Pre-K to 12. It is located in Prince George's County, Maryland, and is accredited through Middle States Association of College ...

Upper Marlboro, Maryland Upper Marlboro, officially the Town of Upper Marlboro, is the county seat of Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population within the town limits was 652, although Greater Upper ...

for two years. He stood 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) as a freshman and was rejected by many

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...

programs. Williams grew 11 in (28 cm) from 2016 to 2018, and transferred to St. Andrew's Episcopal School in

Potomac, Maryland Potomac () is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community and census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 47,018. It is named a ...

, where he repeated his sophomore year. As a junior, he averaged 16 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks per game, earning First Team All-Met honors. For his senior season, he transferred to

IMG Academy IMG Academy is a University-preparatory school, preparatory boarding school and sports training destination in Bradenton, Florida, United States. The organization is set across over 600 acres (243 ha) and features programs consisting of sport ca ...

Bradenton, Florida Bradenton ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Manatee County, Florida, Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city's population is 55,698, up from 49,546 at the 2010 census. It is a pri ...

due to concerns over the impact of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

on access to facilities at St. Andrew's. He averaged 16.3 points and six rebounds per game as a senior. Williams was named to the

Jordan Brand Classic The Jordan Brand Classic is a high school all star basketball game played annually in April. The game's rosters feature the best and most highly recruited high school boys and girls in the senior class. In 2015, a girl's game was introduced. Th ...

roster.

Recruiting

Williams was considered a five-star recruit by

Rivals A rivalry is the state of two people or Social group, groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each ...

, and a four-star recruit by

247Sports 247Sports is an American network of websites that focus mainly on college recruiting, athletic recruitment in college football and college basketball, basketball. It is owned and operated by Paramount Global, Paramount. The website hosts a large ...

and

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

. He committed to playing college basketball for

Syracuse Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

over offers from

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, Georgetown and Miami (Florida).

College career

On February 28, 2022, Williams suffered a lower body injury in an overtime loss to

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

, which was later determined to be season-ending. He averaged 1.9 points and 1.4 rebounds per game. As a sophomore, Williams averaged 7.2 points and 4.1 rebounds per game. He was suspended for two games at the start of his junior season due to a violation of team rules. Williams last game as a member of the Syracuse University men's basketball team was Saturday, February 3, 2024, versus Wake Forest. Williams scored 7 points on 2–9 shooting, to go along with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 turnovers. His last play as a member of the team was a turnover.

References

External links

Syracuse Orange bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Benny 2002 births Living people American men's basketball players IMG Academy alumni Power forwards Small forwards Basketball players from Bowie, Maryland Syracuse Orange men's basketball players 21st-century American sportsmen