Men's Basketball

Mukole, Hudson Combine to Give Howard Win Over UMES

Princess Anne, MD-December 9-Kandi Mukole came off the bench to score 8 of his career-high 12 points in the second half and Darryl Hudson overcame a sub-par performance, tallying all 10 of his points after intermission as Howard edged Maryland Eastern Shore, 65-63 in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference men's game at the William P. Hytche Center.  The game was televised live on ESPNU as part of the MEAC TV package.

            The game was the fourth in seven days for the weary Bison (5-5 overall, 2-0 in the MEAC) and it showed midway through the second half when the Hawks (1-5 overall, 0-1 in the MEAC) threatened to pull away after a 10-2 run that opened a seven-point lead.

            But Howard clawed its way back on the scoring of Mukole, who hit on 3 of 5 shots down the stretch, added a key free throw and recorded one of his two blocked shots for good measure.

            "Kandi really stepped up for us down the stretch and we needed it," said a pleased Howard Coach Gil Jackson.  "He is still learning out there but he is getting better each game with his understanding of what we are trying to do.  It is very encouraging for us to have him play this way in a game like this on the road."

            Hudson, who came in the game averaging 20 points, failed to score in the first 20 minutes, but he made some plays that show up in the final stat sheet and some that do not.

            "Darryl and Eugene (Myatt) have logged a lot of minutes this season," explained Jackson.  "But I feel the both of them did what they needed to do to help us tough out this win, especially in the second half."  Hudson added a team-high 9 rebounds and helped change a potential game-tying shot at the end.

            Myatt, who is averaging 19 points per game, but has struggled of late, contributed 8 points, but missed some easy shots.

            "Eugene is actually playing with a scratch in his eye," said Jackson.  "I think it affected his vision on some of his shots."

            Senior guard Will Gant and freshman guard Curtis White each made solid contributions to the victory.  Gant tallied a team-high 14 points with 4 of his field goals coming from three-point range while White, who continues to show promise each game, scored all 9 of his points-all also from beyond the stripe-- in the first half to help keep the Bison within striking distance.

            "Will showed the veteran that he is when he hit some of those shots and Curtis does a good job of playing within himself," said Jackson.  "This is a game we would have lost last season."

            UMES hit all of its five free throw attempts but made only 3 of 10 in the second half, including missing 5 of the last 6.  The Hawks were paced by Ed Tyson, who led all scorers with 16 and Antonio McMillion and Jess Brooks, who each contributed 14.

NEXT UP:  The Bison have a few days off for finals before returning to action on the road against Oregon State on December 19 while the Hawks travel to Las Vegas, NV to take on Wichita State in the first round of the Findlay Toyota Classic.

• Scoreboard
• Upcoming Games

Multimedia

Meet the Coach

Head Men's Basketball Coach
Gil Jackson