To call Brian Hodges a streaky shooter would be an understatement.
On Monday night, the University of Maryland-Baltimore County junior guard had one of the best offensive nights in program history, scoring a career-high 36 points in 20 minutes in a 86-72 victory at Morgan State.
For the game, the 6-foot-3, 200-pound player connected on 10 of 18 shots overall, including 6 of 9 three-point attempts and 10 of 12 free throws. Hodges scored 21 points in the second half, including a crucial six points in a row that broke a 62-62 tie with 6:05 remaining, to help lead UMBC back from a 33-24 first-half deficit.
Hodges, a Prince George?s County native, struggled mightily over the first couple weeks of the season. He made just three of his first 17 three-point attempts and was shooting .314 from the floor entering Monday?s game. He is currently third in scoring at 12.2 points per game for UMBC (3-3), which returns to the court Friday at St. John?s.
“In the beginning of the game, the shots were feeling good,” said Hodges, who has both started and come off the bench for UMBC. “They just weren?t falling earlier in the season.”
Inconsistent shooting is nothing new to Hodges, who averaged 12.9 points per game as a sophomore. His best game prior to Monday came in the first round of last year?s America East Conference tournament when hecame off the bench and scored 33 points in 28 minutes in a win against Stony Brook.
Hodges started that season brutally, though, connecting on just 21 of his first 100 shots overall, including 11 of 61 from three-point range. But he recovered to shoot 43 percent from the field over his final 20 games.
“I tell Brian all the time that when he plays the way he?s capable of, he?s as good as anyone in our league,” UMBC coach Randy Monroe said. “He?s as good as anyone in the country.”
UMBC NOTES
» Junior guard Brian Hodges? 36 points against Morgan State Monday were the third most scored by a UMBC player in its 21-year Division I history. Derell Thompson owns the Retrievers? record with 43 points at Towson on Feb. 15, 1992. Larry Simmons is second on the list with 39 points vs. Drexel in 1989.
» Hodges? 10 made field goals Monday represented a new career high, while the six 3-pointers and 10 free throws made tied his career best.
