Myatt, Hudson Lead Howard To Home Win Over VMI
Washington, DC-November 25-Darryl Hudson and Eugene Myatt combined to score 20 of Howard's last 23 points to lead the Bison to a 116-111 win over Virginia Military Institute in a wild, non-conference shootout at Burr Gymnasium.
Hudson, a 6-4 senior forward, tallied 21 points of his career-high 28 in the second half while Myatt contributed 21 of his career-best 41 after intermission.
The Keydets (3-4) made it difficult for the Bison with their three-point shooting barrage in the second half as they hit on 13 of 25 for a sizzling 52 percent.
"It was their tempo; they wanted to get out and shoot the ball," said Howard Coach Gil Jackson. "If they get you into their game, it's a disadvantage. We wanted to take quality shots, not the first open shot. It was a tough win because we had to do a lot of adjusting."
Howard (2-3) put together a strong second half and took a 17-point midway through the second half before VMI caught fire as the trio of Fred Robinson, Travis Holmes and Reggie Williams rained down trey balls, combining for 41 second half points to rally their team to a 101 tie.
That is when Myatt and Hudson took turns making the plays that made a difference down the stretch.
"It was a quality 41 points by Eugene and we needed every one of them," said Jackson of the 6-4 sophomore from Philadelphia, PA. "He didn't play selfishly and he's growing into a complete basketball player." Myatt added 8 rebounds and 5 assists to his dazzling 19-for-25 shooting performance that included at least one facial on a Keydet player.
Hudson, the team captain, was equally impressive down the stretch, knocking down six straight free throws to keep VMI at bay.
"Darryl's getting better as a player," said Jackson. "He's a fierce warrior, but he has to be more of a finesse player." Hudson contributed a game-high 11 points, 3 assists and 2 blocked shots to his resume.
VMI, which took 42 three pointers, was led by Williams with 30, Travis Holmes with 24, Matt Murrer with 19 and Chavis Holmes with 14.
The Bison, who had their best shooting performance in many years, torched the nets with a 70 percent shooting (46 of 66) performance that featured more dunks than most have been seen in these parts since the Dunk Patrol back the late 70s and early 80s.
"This was a good win for us; we wanted to play well at home," said Jackson. "The guys wanted to defend home court. The first part of building a program starts with defending your backyard."
GAME NOTES: Myatt has now scored 87 points in the last three games...Hudson has scored 64 in that same span...the Bison held a 48-30 advantage on the boards and 28-12 edge on free throw attempts...Jason Trotter came off the bench and just missed a double-double with 12 points and 9 rebounds...
NEXT GAME: The Bison will try to even their mark on the season when they host St. Francis of PA on Monday at 7 pm in Burr Gymnasium.