Jerome, Brogdon, Hauser Highlight Big Weekend for Former Hoos in the NBA
Tony Bennett is gradually building an empire of players in the National Basketball Association. It seems every night now that two former UVA men's basketball players are facing each other on the court. And these Wahoos aren't just playing - they are exceeding in their time on the floor.
Beginning with UVA's most prominent satellite team in the NBA, the Boston Celtics have continued to see Malcolm Brogdon and Sam Hauser thrive off the bench. In Boston's 123-119 win against the Chicago Bulls on Friday, Brogdon was lights-out, scoring 25 points on an insane 9/10 shooting from the floor to go along with four assists and two rebounds. It was reported after the game that Brogdon was the first Celtics guard to have 25 or more points while shooting 90% off the bench since the three-point line was adopted in the NBA in 1979-1980.
The roll continued for Brogdon the next day, as he delivered his fourth-straight game with double-figures, recording 14 points, five rebounds, and five assists to help lead the Celtics to a 133-118 win at New York. A few of those dimes went to Sam Hauser, who knocked down five of his eight three-point attempts and made six out of his nine total field goals to set a career-high with 17 points.
Brogdon and Hauser made seven of Boston's franchise-record 27 threes in the win over the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Hauser is currently shooting 54.8% from three, which ranks second in the NBA among players who have attempted at least 25 threes.
On Friday night, there were two NBA games featuring former Wahoos going head-to-head. Former UVA teammates Joe Harris and Anthony Gill got the start against one another as Harris helped his Brooklyn Nets take down Gill's Washington Wizards. After playing in just 14 games last season due to a serious left foot injury, Harris is slowly working his way back up to speed, but is already having a significant impact on the team. Harris scored eight points on 3/5 shooting and had four rebounds and three assists to help the Nets crush the Wizards 128-86. Gill was one of Washington's more solid contributors in the loss, tallying eight points on 4/6 shooting and collecting four boards in 28 minutes.
The other matchup of UVA alums was in the Golden State Warriors at New Orleans Pelicans game on Friday night, which featured Ty Jerome and Trey Murphy III. Jerome delivered his best performance in a Warriors uniform so far, dropping 18 points on 7/12 shooting, six rebounds, and five assists, including this sweet pass to Kevon Looney.
Despite Jerome's solid contribution off the bench, the defending NBA champs fell at New Orleans 114-105. Trey Murphy III, who is back to coming off the bench with the return of the Pelican starters to the lineup, made three of his six three-point attempts and recorded 10 points, four rebounds, and four assists in the win.
Murphy faced another former Wahoo the following night, as the Pelicans played De'Andre Hunter's Atlanta Hawks on Saturday. Murphy had a rough night with only two points off the bench, but Hunter continued his streak of scoring in double figures in each of the first nine games of the season, recording 15 points, six rebounds, and an assist in Atlanta's 124-121 win over the Pels.
From the beginning of the rise of Virginia basketball with Joe Harris and Anthony Gill, to the national championship with Ty Jerome and De'Andre Hunter, to the most recent NBA products in Sam Hauser and Trey Murphy III, Tony Bennett has continued to build a strong network of former Wahoos succeeding at the highest level in the NBA.
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