Rodney Hood will transfer to Duke University after playing his freshman season in 2011-12 at Mississippi State, head coach Mike Krzyzewski officially announced on Thursday.
Hood, a 6-8 wing, will sit out the 2012-13 season due to NCAA transfer rules and will have three seasons of eligibility remaining.
“We are very happy to add Rodney to our program,” said Krzyzewski. “We recruited him out of high school and followed his progress at Mississippi State, where he had an outstanding year. We believe that with him sitting out a year and getting prepare he will have a huge positive impact on our program.”
Hood, an SEC All-Freshman Team selection, averaged 10.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game for the Bulldogs a year ago. He shot 44.3 percent from the floor, including 36.4 percent from three-point range, in his lone season in Starkville. Hood reached double figures in scoring 17 times as a freshman with a season-best 20 points in an early season win over Louisiana-Monroe.
The rangy left-hander had an outstanding high school career at Meridian, where he led the Wildcats to the Class 6A state championships as a senior and was a two-time Mississippi Gatorade Player of the Year. He averaged 24.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per game while leading Meridian to a 29-2 record as a senior. During his junior season, Hood averaged 22.1 points, 6.2 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game.
Hood was a consensus top 50 talent coming out of high school, ranking No. 16 by Rivals, No. 30 by ESPN and No. 49 by Scout. Hood’s father, Ricky, played basketball at Mississippi State from 1978-80.
With the addition of Hood, Duke now has eight players 6-7 or taller on the 2011-12 roster.
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