Williams' Career & Season Game-By-Game Stats (PDF)
Fighting Illini senior Da'Monte Williams (Peoria, Ill.) announced on Instagram Wednesday that he will return for the 2021-22 season, taking advantage of the additional year of competition opportunity.
Williams has been a mainstay in the Illini lineup throughout his career, starting 60 of 126 games and totaling 479 points, 483 rebounds, 167 assists and 96 steals while averaging 21.2 minutes per contest.
Williams posted career-best averages of 5.5 points and 5.3 boards this past season. He was the team's third-leading rebounder and earned a reputation as one of the most improved shooters in the nation. Williams drained 35-of-64 from 3-point range, with his 54.7% accuracy leading the NCAA among players with at least two attempts per game.
He scored a season-high 13 points with three steals in the Big Ten Tournament title game victory over No. 9 Ohio State (3/14), hitting all three of his 3-point attempts. He also recorded two double-doubles on the year, tallying 11 points and a career-best 10 rebounds in the victory over Ohio (11/27), and 12 points with a career-high tying 10 boards in the win over Purdue (1/2).
Williams helped lead Illinois to a 24-7 record, including a 16-4 mark in conference play followed by the Big Ten Tournament championship. The Illini earned an NCAA Tournament No. 1 seed and set a school record by defeating six top-10 teams during the season. Illinois finished the year at No. 4 in kenpom, the second-highest rating in program history, and No. 2 in the final AP poll.
Williams is the second Illini senior returning for an extra year of competition, joining Trent Frazier, who announced his decision April 17.
