Sophomore guard Isaac Hamilton has started to leave a big mark on the court for the 2014-15 season. Hamilton was the No. 3 shooting guard to come out of the class of 2013, however a setback hit when he broke his letter of intent to play for the University of Texas El Paso basketball team. After breaking contract, the NCAA decided that Hamilton would be ineligible to play for the 2013-2014 season.
UCLA Bruins
After only being able to practice with the team for a full year, Isaac Hamilton had to work twice as hard to make a comeback. Bruin fans questioned if the No. 14 nationally ranked player would live up to expectations.
Starting from the first exhibition game against Azusa Pacific, Hamilton showed some promise as the assists leader of the game with six total. Although Hamilton didn’t show up again on the board as a game leader for points, assists or rebounds for a few weeks, he put himself back in the spotlight while in the Bahamas over Thanksgiving. After two heavy losses in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament against North Carolina and Oklahoma, Hamilton proved to be a key player in the game against UAB. As the point leader for the game with 21 total, UCLA was finally able to walk away with it’s first and only win of the entire weekend.
Jan 8, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins guard Isaac Hamilton (10) blocks a shot by Stanford Cardinal guard/forward Dorian Pickens (11) in the first half of the game at Pauley Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Averaging at 10.2 PPG and 3.7 RPG, Bruin fans hope to see some more consistency from Hamilton. Although he had been rusty, it is clear that he can in fact share the spotlight with his fellow shooting guard, Bryce Alford. Hamilton has played for an average of 34.2 minutes per game and although he may not be as popular on the court as senior Norman Powell, he has improved in the last few games.
Hamilton has been doing very well lately on the court. Following the intense game against Stanford which went into double-overtime in Pauley Pavilion, the Bruins fought hard to hold onto their winning title when they returned to play at Stanford’s Maples Pavilion on February 5th. Hamilton finished with 18 points, the second highest behind Norman Powell who finished with 20 points.
This helped the Bruins take the win against Stanford for a second time this season. On this past Wednesday night Hamilton also helped lead the Bruins to a win over Oregon State in Pauley Pavilion. With 16 points and a career-high nine assists, it is clear that Hamilton is on a streak that will hopefully continue throughout the next few games as he has the potential to help lead UCLA towards success.