MEN'S BASKETBALL INKS PREP STANDOUT RASHAD BILAL TO NATIONAL LETTER OF INTENT
5/14/2004
Rashad Bilal has signed a national letter of intent to attend UMBC and compete in men’s basketball, Head Coach Randy Monroe announced today.
Bilal (pronounced bi-LALL) is a 6’4” , 185 lb. guard/wing player, who competed for the last two years for coaches Tony Tucker and Mike Moreau at the prestigious IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. His IMG teammates included Ramel Bradley (Kentucky), Danny Morrissey (Penn State) and Stephen McDowell (South Carolina).
Bilal started 18 of 22 games and averaged 12.5 ppg in 2003-2004 season playing against a competitive schedule of national prep schools and exhibitions against Florida junior colleges. The graduate of Edison HS (Bradenton, FL) tallied a season high 38 points vs. Central Florida Community College and a knocked down season high six 3-pointers vs Gulf Coast Community College. He was named All-Star at the prestigious Five Star Basketball Camp during the summer of 2003 scoring 20 points in the all-star game.
“Rashad is a very good offensive player,” said Monroe. “He can put the ball to the floor, penetrate, create,and can really shoot the ball. With two years at IMG, he comes in with a great deal of maturity and is just as good of a person as he is a basketball player.”
The newest Retriever is originally from White Plains, New York, the same town that produced outgoing UMBC senior Kareem Washington. Washington finished his four year career with 1,148 points, 11th most on UMBC’s all-time scoring list.
Bilal joins guards Brian Hodges (Upper Marlboro, MD/Bishop McNamara HS) and Michael Knight (Seattle, WA/Seattle Prep HS) in the UMBC class of ’08. Hodges (SG, 6’3, 195) averaged 11.0 ppg for his 17-6 squad this season, including a season high 23 points vs. Marriott Charter. He hit 22 three-point goals and made 74.3% of his free throw attempts. Knight (SG/PG, 6’3”, 180) averaged 13.8 ppg in both his junior and senior seasons for Seattle Prep, which was 19-7 this past season. He tallied a season high 26 points vs. Cleveland (Wash.) in both the opener and final games of the season.
“I expect these three young men to add a great deal to our program,” said Monroe. “They are all intelligent players from very good programs and they know how to be successful on and off of the court. I am looking forward to working with them and becoming a part of their development process while at UMBC.”
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