City of Basketball Love

By Owen McCue
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OLNEY — Villanova junior guard Tyler Perkins said what a lot of Wildcats fans might have been thinking Wednesday night after another solid early-season outing from teammate Matt Hodge: “I wish he was able to play last year.”

Hodge was part of the program and practiced with his teammates last season, but the Belgian native was kept from game action due to issues with his international transcript.

The versatile 6-foot-8 forward scored a team-high 17 points in a 70-55 Big 5 win over La Salle on Wednesday at Tom Gola Arena. It’s his third double-digit effort in the Wildcats’ last four games.

“It felt good. A good win for the team,” Hodge said. “It was important, a Big 5 game. We take those really serious, so it was a good win for the team.”

Villanova redshirt-freshman Matt Hodge scored a team-high 17 points in Wednesday's win over La Salle. (Photo: Mark Jordan/CoBL)

Hodge played alongside his younger brother Jayden for former Wildcat Brian Lynch at St. Rose in Freehold, N.J. Lynch played professionally in Europe with his father Odell Hodge, who was a standout at Old Dominion before playing professionally in the NBA and overseas.

By the start of his senior season at St. Rose, Hodge had elevated himself into a four-star recruit and Top 100 player in the country, choosing the Wildcats over a number of high major programs, including Maryland.

He was expected to make an impact last season before being forced to the sidelines during a 21-15 campaign. After first-year coach Kevin Willard, who recruited Hodge at Maryland, took over this offseason, Hodge was one of three Wildcats to stay at Villanova, along with Perkins and Wade Chiddick.

The longer than accepted wait to see the floor has been a rewarding one for both Hodge and the Wildcats. He’s averaging 12.6 ppg and 3.2 rpg in the first five games, proving to be a key piece during a 4-1 start.

“It’s amazing,” Perkins said. “I’m glad he’s able to finally play now. I wish he was able to play last year, but it’s amazing to see him do what he does.”

Villanova jumped out to a 9-0 start over La Salle (2-3) on Wednesday and led the rest of the contest, going up by as many as 14 in the first half when Zion Stanford scored a bucket with 4:07 remaining before the break. 

La Salle trimmed the deficit to six before a Hodge 3-point shot sent Villanova into halftime with a 37-28 lead. He added a bucket right after the break to push the Wildcats’ lead back to double digits.

“He’s physical. He’s a physical shooter,” La Salle coach Darris Nichols said of Hodge. “He’s got size. You gotta really get to his shot because he’s got a higher release, but he’s a good player.”

Hodge made a season-high three 3-point shots in Wednesday's win. (Photo: Mark Jordan/CoBL)

Hodge was one of four Wildcats in double figures against La Salle as guards Perkins (13 points), Acaden Lewis (12 points) and Bryce Lindsay (10 points) rounded out the top scoring efforts.

Eric Acker had 17 for the Explorers, who dropped their third straight game.Rob Dockery added 13 points and eight rebounds, and Jaeden Marshall chipped in 10.

Hodge, who has started all five games, opened the season with seven points on 3-of-11 shooting (1-for-7 from 3-point range). He followed with 18 points (8-of-10) against Queens College, six points (2-of-5) against Sacred Heart, and 15 points (5-of-13) on Saturday against Duquesne.

Wednesday was the best performance to date for Hodge in a season-high 35 minutes. He went 7-for-9 from the field for the Wildcats, including a 3-for-5 showing from deep.

“Matt’s been as solid as anybody,” Willard said. “I think he’s getting a little bit more comfortable with how we’re trying to play and also being back. It’s much different than practice, but he’s worked really hard to put himself in this position.”

Hodge was lauded for his versatility as a prospect, and it is something Willard talked about excitedly in the preseason. Hodge can play positions ‘3’ through ‘5’ due to his physicality, handling, basketball IQ and shooting ability.

It was on display Wednesday night, particularly in the second half when he slid from the wing into the front court when Duke Brennan, the nation’s leading rebounder, went out of the game with 9:17 to play and never returned.

“We haven’t really been able to work a small lineup yet because of injuries,” Willard said. “I’m actually looking forward to having Matt and Tafara (Gapare) out there together because I think you have two guys that can shoot. We looked a little disjointed just because we really hadn’t done it.”

“When you have five guys out that can shoot the basketball and drive it, I think it opens up a lot of opportunities,” he added.

As Hodge’s offensive game looks to be rounding into form, there’s still plenty of room for growth elsewhere. How’s his defense?

“It’s horrible,” Willard quipped at Wednesday’s postgame press conference.

Even with a year at Villanova under his belt, Hodge is still getting to know not just Willard but the Division I game.

He knows too there is still a long way for him to go.

“Work to do,” Hodge said, avoiding the specifics at the instruction of his head coach