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Lucas: Unsung Walker keeps Wildcats in NCAA title chase

Mike Lucas  —  3/22/2008 6:18 am

OMAHA, Neb. -- Kansas State power forward Bill Walker doesn't necessarily wear his emotions on his sleeve. More like his arm. And his feet. "I've got a tattoo on my arm of Jesus carrying the cross and it says, 'Feel my struggle,' " said Walker, adding that he also has written the message on his basketball shoes. "It just keeps me humble. It makes sure that I go out there with a clear mind -- ready to hoop."

Such is the unwavering commitment that Walker, a precocious redshirt freshman, will bring to the Qwest Center here today. Walker and the upstart Wildcats, fresh off their unexpected win over USC, will try to sustain their momentum and emotion against the University of Wisconsin in a second-round game of the NCAA men's basketball tournament.

Besides that tat on his arm, one of many, Walker has a chip on his shoulder, too. "Yeah, we know nobody picked us to even be in this tournament at the beginning of the year, but we're here," Walker pointed out. "Once we got to the tournament, we knew nobody picked us to win a game. We did it."

But that's not enough. Trust him. "We want to keep this momentum going and push it as far as we can," he went on. "We feel like in the locker room that it's just us versus everybody else. And that's how we play."

That would especially hold true for the chiseled 6-foot-6, 220-pound Walker. Take his word. "A wise man once told me," he related, "that if you have passion for what you do, you can be successful at it and you can do it for a long time."

Works for him. "I live by that," he stressed. "If you don't have passion in what you do, how can you be successful? And I play the same way."

There's a good chance that you have a working knowledge of K-State's freshman phenom Michael Beasley, who has cast a long shadow over college basketball.

Including Walker.

But he's been there before.

Walker grew up with USC's O.J. Mayo.

"Bill may have been in the shadows throughout my life," Mayo said, explaining why he turned down an opportunity to join Walker on the Wildcats. "I just gave him an opportunity to show his game and just progress as a player and get to know how to play with the ball more (at Kansas State)."

Nice thought. Except Mayo was reminded that Walker stepped out of Mayo's shadows into Beasley's shadows. "Yeah, he's had his bad luck," Mayo said, grinning at the irony. "I don't think Bill got enough credit for what he did when we were playing with each other. And without Bill, I don't think Beasley would be in the talk for national player of the year. I think they take a load off each other."

Another Bill feels the same way.

"Everybody talks about Beasley and rightfully so, he's a terrific" Kansas coach Bill Self has said. "If Beasley wasn't on this team, Walker would be getting the same type of publicity. Everybody has known since he was in the ninth grade that the guy's a pro. He's got unbelievable God-given ability."

So does Mayo. And whenever they were paired together competitively, one was known as "dinner" and the other as "dessert." Who was who? Or what was what? "I would probably say he's dessert," Walker said. "He gives you sweet crossovers, nice NBA moves and step back jumpers. And I just give you a nice solid meal. Just going to the boards, just playing physical."

After Walker helped spark the Wildcats over the Trojans by scoring 17 of his 22 points in the first half, Mayo had this to say afterward. "He has the ability to play the four (power forward) and post any guard. And he also has the ability to go outside against any post player and use his speed and quickness."

Kansas State coach Frank Martin mirrors Walker's passion, particularly when he's talking about Walker. "Bill Walker averaged 16.5 points and almost seven rebounds a game and everybody criticizes his play," Martin protested. "What other freshmen in the country did that in a league like the Big 12? We're asking a 19-year-old young man to carry the torch for a basketball program. That's what we've asked him to do."

He was talking about Walker, not Beasley. "He's a lot like me," Martin continued. "He's stubborn. He's emotional. But he's a winner. At the end of the day, that's the most important quality that young man has."

In the next breath, Martin reminded his audience that Walker had overcome a knee injury that had sidelined him for all but six games last season. "I've been a Bill Walker fan since I first saw him play in high school," Martin concluded, "because he's got an edge and he plays to win."

That edge manifests itself on the glass and the mentality that Walker brings to rebounding, a team strength. "We want to get every loose ball, dominate the boards," he said. "When you do that, you control the game. We try to make that our stamp."

Or brand.

As such, Walker has been branded as a lightning rod, an emotional variable. When it was suggested to Walker that he elevates his teammates when he plays with maturity, he countered, "I never thought I had that much control over other grown men."

Upon further review, he agreed, "I guess as far as emotion goes, if I play in control like we did (against USC), then we're a tough team to beat."

Standing outside the K-State locker room Friday, someone wanted to know if the Wildcats would be able to "out-athlete" Wisconsin, a general assumption.

"You can't. People have tried. They're 30-4," Walker said. "A team with a coach like they have (Bo Ryan) who's a mastermind, you're not going to be able to just out-athlete his ballclub. He's smarter than that. You're going to have to go out there and outplay them. That's the only way you can win. You have to outplay teams."

Especially in March.

Mike Lucas  —  3/22/2008 6:18 am