Who is Kenny Hustle? TCU’s, and the Big 12’s, leading rebounder

What do you call the leading rebounder in the Big 12? A player who shows up in every category for his team — points, blocks, 3-pointers, steals, assists, free throws, minutes?

Hustle.

Kenny Hustle.

“I kind of like the name,” TCU junior Kenrich Williams said. “Because I do find in my game, I hustle.”

He smiled. He knows it fits.

Everyone on the team knows it fits.

“If you lead the league in rebounding, hustling’s probably a part of your game,” coach Jamie Dixon said.

The 6-foot-7 swing guard, healthy after missing last season recovering from knee surgery, is averaging nearly a double-double (9.2 points, 9.8 rebounds) in TCU’s 13-3 start. He had four rebounds, two foul shots, a steal, a tip-in and an assist in the final 6:34 on Wednesday night against Texas, helping fuel a 12-0 run in the Horned Frogs’ 64-61 victory.

It was part of a 13-rebound effort, his eighth double-digit rebound game of the season.

“I had a friend text me after the first game he saw us play,” teammate Alex Robinson said. “He said, ‘I’m going to change Kenrich Williams’ name to Windex Williams — he grabs all the boards, he cleans the glass.’ I was laughing.”

But Kenny Hustle, coined by online publisher Billy Wessels, has stuck, thanks to social media.

Even TCU basketball’s own Twitter account got in on the act.

And it’s probably not going away, given Williams’ desire to make the most of his time on the court after sitting for a season.

“I can’t take anything else for granted because you never know,” he said. “Just watching from the sideline, you know when you can do something to help the team, it’s tough. Now I’m out here. I told myself that every time I’m on the court, I’m going to go 100 percent.”

TCU is trying to squeeze out even more.

“Offensively, we’re still finding ways to get him more involved,” Dixon said. “We have him, I think, in the right spot against zone, but we haven’t seen a lot of zone, where he’s going to be more effective. Put-backs is one thing we’ve been working on with him, and driving the basketball is the second thing we need to get more out of.”

That’s OK with Kenny Hustle.

“I just want to do whatever it takes to win,” he said.

Hey, he’s got a reputation to uphold.

“I do like the name.”

This story was originally published January 12, 2017 at 6:57 PM with the headline "Who is Kenny Hustle? TCU’s, and the Big 12’s, leading rebounder."