'Big Nasty' Named Arkansas' SEC Basketball Legend

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Former two-time All-American and Final Four MVP Corliss Williamson has been named Arkansas’ basketball legend for this year’s Southeastern Conference Tournament, which takes place in Atlanta Thursday through Sunday.

Williamson, nicknamed "The Big Nasty,"earned All-America honors in 1994 and 1995, helping the Razorbacks win the national championship in ’94 and reach the championship game in ’95. He also earned All-SEC honors in 1993, ’94 and ’95, National Association of Basketball Coaches all-district recognition in 1994 and 1995, NCAA Tournament Midwest All-Regional honors in 1994 and Midwest All-Regional MVP honors in ’95.

The Russellville, Ark., native is eighth on Arkansas’ all-time scoring list with 1,728 points for a career average of 19.0. He led the team in 1994 (20.4) and ’95 (19.7) while leading the team in field goal percentage all three seasons (.573 in 1993, .626 in 1994 and .550 in 1995) for a career mark of .583, which is fifth-best in school history.

He is also sixth on the career free throws made list (413) and ninth on the rebounding chart (647) after leading the team in ’94 (7.7) and ’95 (7.5).

He earned Final Four MVP honors in 1994 after helping the Hogs win the national title with wins over Arizona and Duke. In the two games, he was 21-of-42 from the floor (.500), and averaged 26.0 points, 10.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.5 blocked shots and 2.0 steals.

A lottery pick in the 1995 NBA Draft by the Sacramento Kings, he was named the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year in 2002 after averaging 13.6 points and 4.1 rebounds for Detroit. He won an NBA championship with the Pistons in 2004 before retiring following the 2007 season.

Williamson will be recognized at halftime of Arkansas’ SEC Tournament game on Friday. The Razorbacks, 20-10, play the Vanderbilt-Auburn winner at 2:15 (central) in Atlanta’s Georgia Dome.