North Carolina State University Athletics
Hodge loves Manhattan
12/3/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 3, 2004
BY TIM PEELER
There are all kinds of things NC State senior Julius Hodge loves about Manhattan, but mostly they have to do with Mama instead of, say, MoMA.
So when the Wolfpack plays the Jaspers of Manhattan College Sunday (5:30 p.m., RBC Center), the senior All-America might have in the back of his mind Mary Hodge's spaghetti and meatballs.
"Oh, if I was home right now, the first thing I would do would be eat some of my mom's cooking," Hodge said.
He may get that chance later this month when the Wolfpack goes to New York for a post-Christmas visit to Madison Square Garden in the ECAC Holiday Festival. For now, however, Hodge will just have to think about his favorite places in the city and the challenge the Jaspers (3-1) will give the No. 16 Wolfpack (5-0).
"I know how it is," Hodge said. "I know the guys we are going to be playing will be tough, rough and buff. We have to be ready to play them."
But that doesn't keep Hodge, who grew up in an apartment on 151 st St. in Harlem , from getting a little homesick when he hears the name of his next opponent. So here is what Hodge would do if Sunday's game were at Manhattan's Draddy Gymnasium, up on 242 nd Street , instead of the RBC Center.
"After I ate the spaghetti, I would go down and see my little cousins, who live about 10 blocks away," Hodge said. "I would sit down and play some Playstation with them, preferably "Lord of the Rings." Then I would go over to Gaucho's Gym, which is just across the bridge from where we live, about a 10-minute walk, for a little workout. Then there is a Jimbo's Restaurant about six blocks away from where I live. They serve breakfast all day long, so I would probably go there late in the night.
"After all of that, I would probably spend the rest of the time just chilling out."
