2010 January

maryland at clemson preview: the moment of truth

On January 29, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Ian

They say it’s lonely at the top in whatever you do
You always gotta watch motherfuckers around you
Nobody’s invincible, no plan is foolproof
We all must meet our moment of truth

- Guru, Gang Starr, “Moment of Truth”

Gang Starr "Moment of Truth" was the hottest spit ever dribbled. Disagree at your own demise.

Here it is. It’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for. After a shaky start, the Terps have taken care of business. Problems have been addressed. The team got the message from Gary, and is following the lead of Greivis. After a 9-4 start, Maryland has gone 5-1 with their only loss to a tough Wake Forest team on the road. They’re blowing opponents out, averaging a 28PT margin of victory over their four game winning streak. The team is firing on all cylinders, maximizing its potential, and playing its best ball.

Through nineteen games, Maryland sits alone atop the ACC. Now the real work begins.

Maryland travels to Clemson to face the #21 ranked Tigers on Sunday. After beating up on the likes of BC, Longwood College, NC State, and Miami, Maryland heads south to play a ranked opponent in a tough venue. Clemson comes into the game on a slide, losing three straight, but don’t let their recent losses fool you. Two of those three losses came against ranked opponents. The other was a letdown, but it was on the road at BC.

Jordan Williams passed a big test this week when he shut down DaWayne Collins of Miami. He’s going to get a bigger test this Sunday when he goes up against Trevor Booker. Booker is listed at 6′7″, 240 LBS, and every inch of the man child is chiseled stone. NBADraft.net has Booker going late in the first round of the 2010 draft. He’s legit.

Now, I love Williams, but he does have a bit of baby fat on him. He is going to have his hands full with Booker, who comes into the game 16 PTS and 8 RB per game. I believe this low post match-up is a major key to the game. Williams has to contain Booker. He can’t let him get too many second chance points. Williams isn’t going to get as many calls on the road as he did at home against Miami, so he’s going to have to show some maturity and toughness when he’s getting pushed around in Littlejohn Coliseum. If he can, the Terps should be in good shape.

Like Miami, Clemson seems to be struggling in defining roles at the guard spot. Four guards – Demontez Stitt, Tanner Smith, Andre Young, and recently Noel Johnson – have been rotating on the perimeter. Stitt had a huge 20PT game against UNC a couple weeks ago, but has since cooled off and DNP against BC with an ankle injury. While Smith and Young have faded during the Tiger’s losing streak, Johnson has been playing more, although his contributions have been irratic at best. Maryland should be able to exploit these guards and force turnovers, although it will be a bit tougher to do so on the road than it was against Miami in College Park.

Speaking of guards, my man Greivis got a mention in the Weekly Watch by ESPN’s Andy Katz. Katz cited his work against NC State, but the mention is more likely attributable to Greivis’s generally high level of play over the last few weeks. In Maryland’s five ACC games, Greivis is averaging a gaudy 21PTS/7AST/3RB per game, and he has shot 45% FG against ACC opponents. Vasquez will have opportunities to exploit Clemson this Sunday. I believe he will take them.

The overall match-up seems to favor the Terps, especially if you consider momentum. But make no mistake, beating Clemson in SC will be a major hurdle for Maryland. Littlejohn Coliseum will be rocking. Clemson is already playing for their postseason lives. Trevor Booker is a specimen. The Tigers will be a tough out.

How will the Terps fare in this Moment of Truth? This will be the tightest contest they’ve had since the Wake Forest game. I think they’ll pull it out, but the margin of victory will be in single digits.

Final Score: Maryland 78 - Clemson 74.

Addendum: In case you had any doubts as to how tough a game this will be for the Terps, the line in Vegas is opening with Clemson as a 5.5PT favorite.

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R.I.P. Bud Millikan

On January 28, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Scott

News in this afternoon that former Maryland men’s basketball coach Bud Millikan has died at age 89. From 1950 to 1967, Millikan compiled a 243-182 record with the Terps. In the pre-64-team NCAA tournament, the Terrapins reached an Elite Eight and won an ACC title under his leadership.

From 1964 to 1967, Millikan’s point guard was a young man named Gary Williams.

Here’s what Coach Williams had to say on Millikan’s passing:

“He was my coach for all four years. I think his strength was he was a very strict fundamentals coach. That was an important part of a number of us becoming head coaches. To have that many coaches come off one team shows that if you listened, you picked up a lot of good things. He was a tough coach and if you wanted to play, you did things his way. He was a great person.”

Tagged with: Basketball • Bud Millikan • Gary Williams

Stop the Presses! Maryland’s Trap Works…Just Don’t Get Used To It

On January 28, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Scott

There is a growing opinion (mainly among myself) that the full-court press in general — and Maryland’s in particular — is becoming a bit of a relic. Following its Kentucky and UNLV heyday in the mid 80s to early 90s, the number of teams heavily using the traditional full-court trap seems to have greatly diminished. This is perhaps due in no small part to an increase in early college departures and the NCAA’s 1991 decision to reduce scholarships from 15 to 13. These changes mean teams can no longer simply overwhelm opponents with superior depth and athleticism. It may also have to do with the fact that the press is, frankly, pretty easy to solve. Just don’t panic, keep the ball moving, and throw over your defenders for an easy bucket when the opportunity inevitably presents itself.

That trend changed for the Terps on Tuesday against Miami. Maryland pressed them into 14 turnovers in the first half, and breakaway layups and and-ones were a regular occurrence for the Terps. After building a 17-point lead, Gary Williams called off the dogs in the second half, and Miami committed only three additional turnovers the rest of the way.

But it was probably more a blip than anything else. Miami’s main ballhandler is a freshman and all but one of their guards are underclassmen. They’re greener than a bin of alfalfa sprouts, and crumple just about as quickly under pressure. (Zing!) The larger trend is that of the press getting kind of sort of absolutely shredded. For example, the Cincinnati loss turned into a jailbreak, with Maryland giving up 12 fast-break points to score 16 while sacrificing valuable help defense. Even William and Mary — up this year, sure, but still no Kentucky — solved it to the tune of six three-pointers on 50 percent shooting before the Terps retreated to the zone after halftime.

Now take the recent 88-64 blowout of N.C. State, in which Maryland pressed very little and emerged with decisive advantages in fast-break points (10-2) and turnovers (11-9), all while holding N.C. State 18 points below its scoring average from the previous three games.

Which brings us to Sunday’s big showdown with Clemson. It will be extremely interesting to see what Maryland does given that Tigers point guard Demontez Stitt has a gimpy ankle. Here’s hoping they ”repress,” if you will, their full-court urges. Pressure defense is and should remain a Maryland signature, but the all-out full-court press seems like more of a situational play at this point. Is it a coincidence that several recent games, featuring a more judicious use of the press, have heralded no less than a full defensive turnaround? With cagey (and decidedly long-limbed) veterans Greivis Vasquez and Landon Milbourne committing fully to defense, Sean Mosely become a stone-cold defensive stopper, a tougher and scrappier inside presence led by Jordan Williams and Dino Gregory, and some booster fuel off the bench in the form of Adrian Bowie (we’ll see if it sticks), this team doesn’t need to resort to gimmicks.

Tagged with: Adrian Bowie • Basketball • Dino Gregory • Gary Williams • Greivis Vasquez • Landon Milbourne

Maryland Basketball Recruit Terrell Stoglin Now a Record Holder

On January 27, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Scott

The Baltimore Sun’s Recruiting Report, via the Arizona Daily Star, has reported that 2010-2011 Maryland recruit and point guard heir apparent Terrell Stoglin has set a new scoring record for Tuscon prep basketball. Last Friday, Stoglin got 21 points to pass Chuck Overton for most career points in the history of the mad-crazy basketball hotbed known as Tuscon, Ariz. Don’t sleep on Chuck Overton, son. He was the best character on Living Single.

Stoglin, who is averaging 27 points a game, now has a decent chance to move into second place on the state’s all-time list, currently occupied by Trailblazers guard Jerryd Bayless. Terrell is also 446 points short of the all-time state scoring mark of 3,002, held by some guy named Mike Bibby. I hate that guy. Good luck, Terrell.

Tagged with: Basketball • Maryland basketball recruiting • Terrell Stoglin

maryland whups miami 81-59

On January 27, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Ian

The Terps made easy work of the lowly Miami Hurricanes last night in College Park. Before last night’s game I felt that Maryland would win, but I didn’t think it would be that easy. Maryland is coming into its own at just the right time this year. Here’s what I learned from the beat down of the McClintonless Canes:

Landon Milbourne is a stud. He was 7/10 from the field and finished with 16PTS and 5RB against a tough, physical Miami front court. The Brothers Barry were talking him up like he was NBA material toward the end of the game.
Speaking of the Brothers Barry, is it really appropriate to have them both announcing the same game? Their banter sounded like dinner conversation at some lame family gathering. ”Interesting point John, would you please pass the dinner rolls?” They actually went so far as to trot out family pictures. At one point, Drew Barry compared Greivis to Larry Bird. I love Greivis and all, but come on, couldn’t ESPNU get a couple of pros to do this game?
This game was the best game of Jordan Williams’s short career. 8PTS and 6RB might not sound like a sexy stat line, but he did it against Dawayne Collins, one of the bigger power forwards in the ACC. Williams also succeeded in keeping Collins off the offensive glass, which was no small feat, and took him off his game to the point where he was in foul trouble and sat for 16 minutes. Williams is starting to look like the missing piece that completes Maryland’s puzzle as a legitimate contender.
Dawayne Collins is a big dude but he’s slow. He needs to learn how to get his body under control, and he needs to learn that you can’t jump over the back of another player to get a rebound. That’s an “over-the-back foul”. It’s in the rulebook. Look it up.
To say that Miami is poorly coached is like saying that Baltimore has nasty strip clubs. It’s blatantly obvious, but nobody knows what to do to improve it. Miami spent the first half turning the ball over 14 times and leaving Maryland shooters wide open, and then they proceeded to do more of the same in the second half with no adjustments. Frank Haith was seriously outclassed last night.
Interesting point from the AP: “Combined with an 88-64 win over North Carolina State on Saturday, Maryland has recorded successive 20-point victories in the conference for the first time since February 2003.” After last night’s game I was thinking that I couldn’t remember a time when we had back-to-back ACC blowouts like this. Maybe that’s because my long term memory only goes back eight days.
Maryland is suddenly an outside shooting threat. Don’t tell anyone, but since the W&M game the Terps have been taking what the defense gives them. Last night they were 7/15 (46%) from beyond the arc. Keep playing zone, ACC opponents, please stay in that zone.
The press seemed to work last night against an inferior opponent. I don’t know if that’s a result of good coaching on Maryland’s part or bad coaching on Miami’s part, but it did work. Don’t count on it against Clemson.
It was a quiet 16 PTS and 9 AST for Greivis last night. He did what he needed to do to win the game. We only saw one Greivis Shimmy. Only one behind the back pass. I guess he’s saving his mojo for Sunday night.

Maryland has taken care of some crucial must win games before heading into the maelstrom that is the rest of the ACC schedule. I feel great about where the team is right now. The true test comes this Sunday at Littlejohn Coliseum.

Tagged with: Basketball • Dawayne Collins • Greivis Vasquez • Jordan Williams • Landon Milbourne

miami at maryland basketball preview: canes are a rudderless ship in a storm

On January 26, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Ian

The Aliaga Petkim team logo is ubiquitous with showtime.

For the first time this decade, Maryland will face a Miami Hurricanes team without Jack McClinton. McClinton was the face of Miami basketball for the latter half of the aught aughts, although it seemed like he was there forever. Terps fans won’t miss Jack, who averaged about 18 PTS per game during his three years at Miami and seemed to always rise to the occasion when playing Maryland. Jack now hoops it up for Aliaga Petkim of the TBL – the Turkish Basketball League (not the tuberculosis league you silly goose). There’s nothing like showtime in Instanbul when it comes to top notch bball action. Needless to say, McClinton can’t do any damage to the Terps from there.

While Maryland rides a wave of good tidings and new found optimism into tonght’s match-up, the McClintonless Hurricanes wash ashore in College Park like a rudderless ship. According to an article in the Post, Maryland’s starting rotation has been static since ACC play started, while Miami has gone to eight different starters in four ACC games. This approach has not yielded good results for the Canes as they have dropped their last three in conference contests.

While Miami has enjoyed success against the Terps in recent years, there are reasons to feel that the Terps should come out above water tonight. While Miami comes skidding into this game, Maryland has been playing at a high level lately, outscoring their opponents by 30 PTS/GM over the last three games. Over the last five games, Eric Hayes has begun to show signs that he is more than just a man of many haircuts (Scott, this is a reminder that you need to add his new feathered doo to the list), and has averaged 10 PTS/GM and 3.6 AST/GM over that period. Hayes is also shooting a team high 46% from 3-PT range over the course of the season. He should have a favorable match-up against a tandem of Miami point guards that have been toiling in mediocrity lately.

Oh, and did I mention that Miami no longer has Jack McClinton? The Canes are now the Dwayne Collins Show. The 6′ 8″ senior forward leads Miami in PTS/GM (12.7) and RB/GM (8.7), but Miami has been largely a “scoring by committee” team this year. The young Maryland bigs can really show me something if they can keep Collins off the offensive glass in this game. Crashing the boards and eliminating second chances will likely be the lead of Gary’s pep talk tonight.

Meanwhile, the Terps have Greivis “The Closer” Vasquez to stick a dagger in the Miami attack. Despite the fauxhawk, Vasquez has looked like Good Ol’ Greivis from the second half of last year, as opposed to the Evil Greivis we saw to start the 2010 campaign. Look for Greivis to get it going early against a weak Miami back court.

Add it up, and the #1 in the ACC Maryland Terrapins should pull out a comfortable win against the last place in the ACC Miami Hurricanes tonight in College Park. I’d like to see the double digit victory train keep rolling. The more of those wins that Maryland can get - before playing against Clemson and the rest of the ACC Murderers Row in the next month - the better.

Vegas has Maryland at an 8PT favorite, and the O/U is 146. The teams combine to average 157 points, and I don’t see this game being a defensive struggle. I say take the Terps and the over. Maryland wins 78-69.

Tagged with: Basketball • Eric Hayes • Greivis Vasquez • Jack McClinton

For Terps, Trouble With a Capital T, Which Rhymes With C, Which Stands for Canes

On January 26, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Scott

It could also rhyme with P and stand for Polls, or with T and stand for Trap Game (if T really “rhymes” with itself…I know Rick Ross thinks so, but perhaps more study is needed). But am I the only one who’s nervous about this whole OMG-Maryland’s-going-to-win-the-ACC phenomenon? They received votes for a top 25 ranking this week for the first time in a while. The ACC is wide open, people exclaim! Anything can happen! After all, Maryland just beat N.C. State, N.C. State beat Duke, and Duke beat Clemson. So we don’t even have to play Clemson, right? We’ll get the W based on column inch mindshare alone!

But can’t we all see this coming from a mile away? Maryland wins a few games, the accolades flow, and the trap is sprung. To the team’s credit, they’re saying the right things, more or less, but I still get the feeling we’re just the same old pasture animal wandering into the same old abbatoir. And it’s all coming to town tonight. That’s right: it’s the last-place Miami Hurricanes, or as I call them, Maryland’s nemesis. So be afraid, Terp fans. Be very afraid.

True, Miami is a bad team in total disarray (more on this later). But would you really be THAT surprised if Maryland lost? If so, you shouldn’t be. Over the past four years, Maryland is 2-5 against the mighty Canes, who went a sparkling 27-42 in the ACC in that same span. The games always seem to be impeccably scheduled for maximum complacency potential. With Maryland playing so well, that’s the Great Satan in this stretch of the season.

It’s a cycle of Phil Connors-esque proportions. Last year, the Terps won eight of nine before losing by two to a Miami team that ultimately finished 7-9 in the ACC. Two years ago, the Terps had won five of seven before losing to a Miami team that ultimately finished 8-8. But wait, I’m not finished yet. Three years ago, Maryland lost TWICE in the same season to a Miami team that finished FOUR AND TWELVE in the conference…the first was a regular season loss that halted a five-game winning streak, the second was an ACC tournament loss that stopped a seven-game streak. Four years ago, Miami stopped a six-game Maryland streak, but ultimately finished 7-9 in the conference.

So we’ve been here before. Over, and over, and over, again. To make a good case for the tournament, Maryland will need to do more than beat the cellar dwellars of a “wide open” (ie, down) ACC. But if wins over the Clemsons and Dukes (still so very theoretical) are going to build the foundation of our Big Dance resume, we’ve got to first level the vacant lot and clear out all the weeds and rocks and cow crap. That means beating Miami. Can they do it? Yes. Yes, they can. Will they? I don’t know. What I do know is, you’re not a good team if you can’t crush the low-hanging fruit. So come on, Maryland. Crush it.

Tagged with: Basketball • miami

maryland women gave duke a run for their money, fell short

On January 25, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Ian

Lori Bjork led the Terps with 11 PTS despite being chased by a man in a bear costume.

The unranked Maryland women’s basketball team came within a point of #6 Duke at the Comcast Center yesterday. Despite losing their second straight home game 58-57, Maryland walks away from the first women’s basketball game ever televised in HD more battle hardened than before. The Terps were definitely the underdogs coming into this game, and they played Duke down to the wire.

Maryland forced Duke to play ugly and it paid off, with Duke shooting just 32% FG. The young Maryland squad continued to show growth and toughness. Despite being down 11 PTS in the second half, the Terps came back to make it a two possession ballgame as time wound down. Senior guard Lori Bjork hit a few clutch three’s to keep Maryland in it down the stretch. Bjork led the team in scoring with 11 PTS.

The Terps would have likely won the game if they hit more free throws. The team was a paltry 9/17 from the stripe for the game. 52% from the line aint gonna cut it in a home game against a better team.

With the loss, Maryland drops to 14-6 (2-4 ACC) with nine regular season games left. I hate the idea of a positive loss, but this game might qualify. However, time is running short. The team is going to have to get it together in a hurry if they’re going to make a run at a postseason berth.

Tagged with: Basketball • Lori Bjork

N.C. State-Maryland Basketball Recap in Ten Easily Digestible Bullet Points

On January 23, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Scott

What…what just happened? Wait…did I…did I actually call this game perfectly? Is that what happened? Did my predicted Maryland butt-kicking of N.C. State just come to fruition? Whatever happened, it’s sweet, baby, as the Terps smeared N.C. State Wolfpack 88-64. I only wish my score prediction hadn’t been so conservative. To the points:

What else did I predict? Can you refresh my memory? I believe I said Sean Mosely would go off. Well, he ended up with 13 points (and it would have been more if not for a somewhat off shooting night), 7 boards and 4 assists. Scott Wood, welcome to the ACC.
I believe I also predicted a big night from one Cliff Tucker. And I believe you can add another check to the “things Scott was right about” column. Eleven points and one steal in 17 crisp minutes. Bravo, sir. And Cliff, nice job, too. Okay, I’ve had my moment.
Maryland did a great job around the rim defensively. They limited the Pack’s second chances and always seemed to be drawing fouls, rather than committing them (21 State fouls to 16 for the Terps), which means they were a little quicker to the ball.
Maryland did not do a great job around the rim offensively. I saw Jordan Williams, Eric Hayes, Dino Gregory, and Mosely all miss some easy ones. It’s an odd recurring theme with no quick (or at least apparent) solution.
Speaking of Dino, though, and getting back to defense, Dino did an outstanding job on Tracy Smith. He used great footwork to stay between Smith and the basket and keep him out of the lane. Tracy still netted an 18 and 10, but he sure had to work for it.
One more point on the defense: N.C. State averages 72 points per game on 46 percent shooting. Tonight, they got 64 points on 36 percent shooting. Only eight points below average, but again, we made them work. And they didn’t seem to enjoy it. Maybe that’s why an eight-point halftime lead went to 17 by the 10-minute mark, and ended up at 22.
A nice 9-9 for Jordan Williams, but more aggression at the rim would be a positive.
In addition to his great offensive game, Mosely also led the way in shutting down Dennis Horner, the team’s second leading scorer (and 18th in the ACC). Horner got four points on 1-5 shooting, well below his average of 13.
Vasquez had 19 to lead all scorers, but for the second consecutive game, just about all of it came in the second half. Who is he now, Kobe Bryant? He is The Closer. The Vasquez Shimmy is like the Red Auerbach Cigar, only minus the ten championships and hundreds of victories and so forth.
And last but most certainly not least: CONGRATULATIONS TO GARY WILLIAMS ON HIS 1000TH GAME!!! I love you, man.

(Photo credit: UMTerps.com)

Tagged with: Basketball • Big Wins • Cliff Tucker • Dino Gregory • Gary Williams • Jordan Williams • N.C. State • Sean Mosley • Vasquez

I Knew I Recognized Dennis Horner From Somewhere