Bound by brotherhood, UNCW's Noah Ross, Nolan Hodge chase one last run together

For all the new faces set to wear UNCW colors this winter, two veterans are lacing up one last time.

Noah Ross and Nolan Hodge have grown up inside Trask Coliseum. Four years, countless games, and one shared mission have turned them from recruits with promise into veteran players who embody what Seahawk basketball has become.

On Monday, Nov. 3, UNCW opens its 2025-26 season against Mount Olive, and for Ross and Hodge, it marks the start of their final chapter.

Last season, they helped the Seahawks to a 27-8 record and the program's first NCAA Tournament berth in eight years. They could have chased their fate into the unknown, stepping through the transfer portal to see what destiny held on the other side. Instead, they stayed, bound by loyalty and drawn to the gravity of unfinished business.

2025 PREVIEW 'Our own journey': 3 things to know about UNCW basketball in 2025-26 season

"Those guys are like family to me," coach Takayo Siddle said at media day on Oct. 2. "I'll be very sad when they leave. Having them stick around is gonna be the key to our success."

Ross and Hodge's journey to UNCW, which began with prep careers at North Carolina high schools, started on the same day, just minutes apart.

No longer the bright-eyed freshmen searching for a place to belong, Ross and Hodge are now shaping their own legacy, and their story is far from finished.

"We always hang around each other, and honestly, I wouldn't want to spend these four years with anybody else," Hodge said. "He's been by my side, I've been by his side, and you can see that when we're on the court."

A summer that started it all

It's a humid summer day in 2021. Somewhere between offseason drills and glances at preseason chatter, Takayo Siddle ducks into his office to take a call.

He's scouted a promising guard in Noah Ross during most of his senior season at Raleigh's Trinity Academy. Ross had good size, averaged 18.8 points per game, and most importantly to Siddle, possessed the same edge he once wore during his own playing career. Now Ross is ready to make it official. He's coming to UNCW.

But Siddle's phone wasn't done stealing his attention just yet. As soon as he finished talking with Ross, it rang again. It was Nolan Hodge. The 6-foot-7 guard from Greensboro's Northern Guilford High School was also ready to become a Seahawk.

Call it fate, call it happenstance, but Ross and Hodge were now bound by something beyond their control. A sort of energy only constructed in the movies. The duo immediately bonded, becoming roommates and spending hours together outside the basketball court.

“We had no clue who each other were at the time, but we came down here on our official visit in August, and that was the first time we met each other,” Ross said. "I could just kind of tell he was raised similar to me and was a good kid, and we clicked then and have kind of been inseparable since.”

Siddle nicknamed them the Brothers , a name that stuck after they made custom shirts with their faces pasted over Brennan Huff and Dale Doback from the 2008 cult comedy Step Brothers .

But the seasons that followed didn't play out like a Hollywood script. Over duo's first two years as Seahawks, the team lived through every shade of the game: moments of triumph, heartbreak and everything in between. They came within reach of a conference title and an NCAA bid in 2023, only to watch the moment slip away.

Those near misses found new meaning last season, when UNCW finally broke through, winning the CAA Tournament and earning its first March Madness berth in eight years.

“It hasn't always been easy,” Ross said. “There've definitely been some rough patches, which is why it was so rewarding last year to finally get to cut down those nets.”

The final chapter, together

It's no secret that, in the age of the transfer portal, keeping a player for four years is rare. Even as UNCW watched key contributors from last year's roster move on this offseason, Ross and Hodge stayed. For them, the reason was simple.

“I wanted to have a place that I could call home and leave a legacy,” Hodge said. “I could have left for the short-term gain, but to be able to come back here whenever I'm done and still have something to hold on to and call home... that's the reason I came back.”

There's something different about UNCW for the two of them. It isn't just the beaches or the blue skies, it's the culture, the bond on the court, that's turned loyalty into something more profound.

“We have a deep sense of trust that goes beyond the court, and that’s made our relationship even stronger,” Ross said of his coach and teammates.

“I don't think you can put a price tag on that.”

Siddle has never hidden how much Ross and Hodge matter, both in the game and beyond it.

“I think family means a lot to them,” Siddle said. “Being part of something bigger than themselves — all of that comes into play. Those are two guys I’ll keep in touch with for the rest of their lives.”

UNCW gets its 2025-26 season underway on Nov. 3. For Ross and Hodge, it could be their last season opener together. Their story has been shaped by countless moments, but they’ll cross the finish line side by side.

“I've told people a thousand times, if I could choose UNCW again, I would,” Ross said. “I'm big on loyalty, and the relationships I’ve built here... I wouldn't trade that for anything.”

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Why UNCW basketball player Noah Ross, Nolan Hodge stuck with Seahawks