SportsCollege

Actions

Godwin gets his shot, makes his shot for ODU men’s basketball team

Posted at 11:36 PM, Feb 14, 2018
and last updated 2018-02-14 23:44:07-05

Marquis Godwin ODU men's basketball

NORFOLK, Va. - At 10-and-2 in Conference USA play, the Old Dominion men's hoops team is feeling it.

Literally. The feeling is ill.

The Monarchs are fighting a flu bug. Head coach Jeff Jones missed Monday's practice and wore a surgical mask while watching Tuesday'as workout from the sideline. Freshman Michal Hueitt, Jr. missed Saturday's game at Louisiana Tech after he became sick on the team's road trip.

Marquis Godwin ODU men's basketball

As for Hueitt's roommate? He's feeling great.

Fellow freshman Marquis Godwin, a Hampton High School product, had scored just three points between December 9 and last Thursday.

However, in a come-from-behind win at Southern Miss, Godwin played a career-high 13 minutes and scored a career-high 12 points on a four-of-five shooting performance.

"After that game, my phone was ridiculous," Godwin said smiling. "There were a lot of people texting me and my Twitter was crazy with notifications."

Marquis Godwin ODU men's basketball

A three-star recruit out of high school, Godwin has played double-digit minutes just twice during his freshman season with the Monarchs. Averaging four minutes per game and 2.1 points per game, we asked Godwin if he had become frustrated prior to his coming-out party last week in Hattiesburg.

"These last couple months, some days - it has been," Godwin admitted. "I don't like to show it, but it had been tough on me a little bit. Mentally - I had to just stick to it and blow past it. These past couple months have definitely helped me become a better player and deal with adversity better than I already have. I'm glad I went through it."

"I told him, 'just because you're not playing - it doesn't mean you're not valuable," ODU guard B.J. Stith, the team's leading scorer, explained. "If we didn't think you could play, you wouldn't be here. Your time will come."

Godwin and the Monarchs, 19-and-5 overall and tied for second place in Conference USA, host Texas-San Antonio Thursday at 8:00 p.m.