Welp. So much for the road to the ACC title. Thanks for the jinx, Stu.

These conference tournaments are strange, strange animals.  No other setting lends itself more readily to games like tonight’s, with one team thrashing for its life like a drowning victim while the other team drifts by in an inflatable duck.  In the second half, Maryland discarded the duck to fight back from 16 down to get within a basket, but Georgia Tech managed to overcome their panic this time and pull it out somehow, 69-64.  

In winning, Tech punches its dance card for next week’s tournament.  Maryland succumbs to the same upset bug that infected Wake Forest, Clemson, Virginia Tech, and Florida State. Credit where it’s due:  the Jackets came to play.  Plenty of people speculated that GT was quitting on their coach.  Didn’t happen.  They outrebounded Maryland 38-28. They shot a ridiculous 67 percent from three. Iman Shumpert played brilliant defense on Greivis Vasquez, culminating with a quick-handed strip that prevented the ACC player of the year (6-21 shooting on the night) from getting off the potentially game-winning shot. Add in 14 points and four assists, and Shumpert’s your Paris Hilton Honorary No-Brainer Player of the Game.

Still, it’s not like Georgia Tech suddenly became a different team. It was the same song and dance for GT…world beaters one minute, you-know-what beaters the next. After watching Derrick Favors, Gani Lawal, and Zach Peacock dominate the boards in the first ten minutes, then watching their only player over 6′7″ get in early foul trouble, Maryland seemed to essentially cede the painted ground in favor or more ball pressure. Six scant minutes into the second half, Georgia Tech had committed 10 turnovers. It’s not hard to understand the frustration GT fans have with head coach Paul Hewitt. The Jackets lost the ability to cleanly inbound the basketball, and it took a REALLY long time for them to regain that ability. I think in a way, some GT fans were almost hoping for a loss here so there would be a clear-cut reason to fire Hewitt and start fresh. But it won’t be that simple. Not to say they fans aren’t happy for the win, but…you get what I’m saying.

As for Maryland, they still look good for a fifth or sixth seed. And hey, look on the bright side. This is probably the least-stressful ACC tourney we’ve had in quite a while, and I’ll take it, even with the upset. After all, I’ve got dinner plans this weekend.

(Photo credit: The Baltimore Sun)

And that’s real.

Mad science droppin’ on you, son. Mad knowledge. And if you liked that, better stay tuned. Because what you hear? It’s not a test. I’m bloggin to the beat.

Word up.

Today’s subject? Haters. Urbandictionary.com defines it as “a person that simply cannot be happy for another person’s success.” I know this silky-smooth man before you has his share. They say my on-air persona is affected. Forced. Dated. Dated? Word? For reals? Well, so what if I model myself after the House Party film franchise and, well, urbandictionary.com? Tisha Campbell was MAD fine, kid! And really, straight up, what else do you expect? I went to the same high school as Ben Folds, son. Ben Folds.

But I’m not here to talk about me! I’m here to talk about what I think about the ACC tournament. Specifically? The Maryland Terps, and their path to the ACC title, which could land them stupid high in the Ginormous Get-down next week.

That’s what I call the big dance.

Terps. Jackets. You know the names. Vasquez. Favors. Williams. Hayes. Lawal.  Two schools of thought on Georgia Tech right now. One, they’ll be MAD-DUPERTY-adrenalized to face the Terps, because a win would get them off the bubble and avenge their previous buzzer-beater loss to the Terps. The other school is that this team has lost the will to compete, maybe even given up on coach Paul Hewitt. You want to talk about haters? The Jackets’ AD is mum until the end of the season, but there’s plenty of criticism to fill the void. Plenty of speculation that he’ll be fired.  In other words, plenty of Haterade.

I’m of the opinion that the Jackets are gonna fight. Go back to the top of this post, home skillet. Peep John Wooden. Athletes always strive to do their best. What would giving up in the biggest game of their college careers do for the draft stock of certain players? Nah, they’re gonna come correct. But after escaping Carolina just last night, they’re not gonna have enough left for the high-octane Terps, particularly at the guard positions.

It might mean Hewitt’s job. But don’t hate, GT fans. Don’t boo our athletes, guys. They’re human beings. Large human beings, famous and potentially very rich human beings, but human beings nontheless. So let’s coddle our athletes. No booing. Please. You’re making my eye well up. Most likely with tears.

The only team on the Terp side of the bracket who has beaten them this season is Clemson. And whoops! Looks like Clemson spit up that bit last night against N.C. State.  Hater in the house!  Mad props to the Pack.  Good news for Maryland, as they’ll get the Wolfpack or Florida State. And I don’t wanna say nothin, but that ain’t right.  The Pack?  Not good. Period. The Noles? Finished strong. A projected eight seed as of today. But this season? Maryland’s straight killin ‘em, son. Two wins with an average 16-point victory margin. With Alabi and Singleton inside, it’s never a cake walk. But Maryland should handle them.  Man, the Terps are gettin crazy love right now!

But it’s like Heavy D says. Now that the Terps have found love, what are they gonna do with it? A Maryland-Duke final is for all the marbles, kid. Winner takes the season series and probably a two or three seed. Duke? Cool as the other side of the pillow. You know they’re making it.  We’ll see whether the Terps can hold up their end. I’m thinking they will. Don’t front.

Upsets have cleared out some contenders. Now we’ll see if the Cinderella bug is here to stay, or if the remaining favorites are gonna show and prove like my man John Wooden. Or my hero, Jam Master Jay. Because for Maryland and Duke? Those turntables might wobble. But in the end, son, they don’t fall down. And that’s real.

Swallow your coffee before you read on.  In business speak, there’s one BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) left on the table, and that is to win an NCAA Championship.  EASY MAN!  Breathe.  OK, now stop laughing.  Seriously, that’s what this team is out to do.  Let it sink in, Terps fans.  This team is embarking on a championship campaign, and winning it all is the desired outcome.

There are a few parallels between this team and the 2002 championship team.  2002 was the last year that Maryland got the ACC Coach of the Year and Player of the Year awards in the same year.  The 2002 team had a big man, Chris Wilcox, that was the x-factor that put them over the hump in the tournament.  This year, Jordan Williams has the potential to take his game to the next level in the Big Dance just like Wilcox did.  On a position-by-position basis, this team greatly resembles the 2002 team.  Greivis has put up similar scoring numbers to Juan Dixon.  Eric Hayes draws obvious comparisons to Steve Blake.  Jordan Williams is much like a bigger version of Lonny Baxter.  One could argue that Wilcox and Mouton were a bit stronger than Milbourne and Mosley, but the overall talent differential among the starters is not wide.

My point here is that I’m trying to get you to believe that this team has championship potential.  They’re built to run Gary Williams’s system.  Winning it all is not probable, but that’s why its a BHAG.  It’s not likely.  It’s a reach.  It’s something to aim high for.

If the Terps aim that high and hit low they might show up in the Elite 8.  From a programmatic standpoint, that would mean more to Maryland than winning the ACC Tournament.  Maryland already has a banner to raise from its conference play this year.  The one thing that would gain them greater national recognition – the kind that keeps blue chip players from decomitting to the program – is a run in the Big Dance.  I’m certainly not rooting against an ACC Tournament Championship.  I’d love to see that happen.  But there are bigger fish to fry.

The best case scenario for this weekend is that the Terps lose in the semi’s and leave some gas in the tank for the field of 65.  If the Terps go all the way to the ACC Championship game it’s likely that they’ll have a knock down, drag out brawl with Duke on Sunday, only to turn around and have to play in the NCAA Tournament next Thursday.  Maryland would be much better off in the NCAA Tournament if they’re coming in off a letdown, chip on your shoulder loss and four days rest instead of an emotional, draining win and three days rest.

I’d trade an ACC Tournament Championship banner for an reappearance in the Sweet 16 or better.  The Sweet 16 used to be the minimum expectation for this club a decade ago.  With a focus on the Big Dance, Maryland could start to get the program back to the point where those expectations apply every year.  I’m not advocating that they dive out of the ACC’s, but I won’t be upset if they bow out on Saturday and start getting ready for a NCAA run.

Start thinking big Terps fans.

/Brings out Dickie V computer-generated language extruder — he’s been dead for 20 years, you know — and presses play:

Yeesssss, time once again to reveal my Dickie V All-Solid Gold Team, baby! It’s awesome, baby! It’s amazing to see so many awesome young guys contributing. In such a positive way. It’s awesome, baby!

Why did these players make my All-Solid Gold Team? Three words: super, scintillating, sensational. They’re PTPers, baby! High risers! The creme de la creme. Numero uno in college basketball. The best of the best. Solid. Gold. Hey! Hey! My first team has seven guys on it! We’re playing in the Dickie V league! Seven on super scintillating seven! I love these guys! It’s awesome, baby! Hey! Hey! Is that a car? I’m gonna chase it, baby! Where’s it going? It’s unbelievable!

/hurriedly stops Dickie V computer program

So here’s his first team:

ALL-SOLID GOLD FIRST TEAM
John Wall, Kentucky
Jon Scheyer, Duke
Greivis Vasquez, Maryland
Scottie Reynolds, Villanova
DeMarcus Cousins, Kentucky
Evan Turner, Ohio State
Wes Johnson, Syracuse

Dickie V’s analysis: “Jon Scheyer and Greivis Vasquez have been the premier PTPers in the ACC.” Yes. Scheyer over James Anderson, huh? Wow. It’s almost as if Dickie V — now stay with me — wants to find reasons to praise Duke. I’m just throwing it out there. It’s like a, a, what’s the word I’m looking for, BIAS. It is almost as if he is biased.

But in any case, with this honor the Greivis Vasquez trophy case is now officially closed. I look forward to seeing the All-Solid Gold Dickie V Head next year at Comcast Center.

Today at 6 p.m., the National Collegiate Wrestling Something Something will reveal the brackets for the college wrestling championships. For truly, March is a month of madness for more than just basketball fans, you self-centered jackass.

According to the U of M news release, six of Maryland’s 10 wrestlers won automatic bids during the ACC Tournament, where the team finished second just behind Virginia. Steven Bell, Alex Krom, and Hudson Taylor all won individual ACC championships at their respective weight classes, with Taylor being named the tourney’s most outstanding wrestler, or MOW, as I like to call it. You may already know this about the MOW, but he’s been receiving a lot of publicity lately for his outspoken advocacy for gay rights. I’m no expert, but it would appear that gay rights advocacy is not something that is common in the world of collegiate wrestling. Pro wrestling, maybe. (For the record, Taylor is straight. He actually just proposed to his girlfriend. Not that it matters. Hey, where’s that ejector button? Oh, here it is.)

Kyle John, Josh Asper, and James Knox also received automatic qualifications for the tournament.

Two Terps looking for at-large bids are Corey Peltier and Patrick Gilmore, who wrestles at 285. That’s a big boy. I didn’t know the weight classes went that high.

The selection show will stream here. Congrats and good luck to all.

“Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp. Or what’s a heaven for?”
– Robert Browning

“Two out of three ain’t bad.”
– Meatloaf

I thought these quotes, from two titans of English letters, were a perfect way to lead the post.  Yes, that decision to minor in English has already paid for itself.

The awards are in. One day after making the All-ACC and All-America first teams, Greivis Vasqeuz has been named ACC Player of the Year. Vasquez earned 39 votes in the balloting, Jon Scheyer got 12 votes, and Malcolm Delaney got two. No Carolina bias there.

Vasquez is breathing some rarefied air now, as he’s only the fifth Terp to win the award, behind Juan Dixon, Len Bias (1985 and 1986), Albert King (1980), and Joe Smith (1995). So go ahead and etch his likeness into Mount Terpmore, and I shall genuflect before it. For truly is Greivis Vasquez one of the greatest Maryland ballers of all time.

In somewhat far less surprising but no less terrific news, Gary Williams has been named ACC Coach of the Year for the second time.

These are the first such honors for Maryland since the 2001-2002 championship season. Dixon won POY that year and Gary got COY.

Think about that for a second.

Serious kudos also go out to Jordan Williams, who finished second in the ACC Rookie of the Year vote behind Georgia Tech phenom Derrick Favors. As previously noted, Jordan’s a winner here just for being in the ROY conversation with that monster.

So the sweep has eluded us. But no matter. These are all huge accomplishments.

Let’s see if they can get four out of five when the ACC tourney kicks off this weekend.  Here’s hoping these are just the first great memories from this postseason.

Ah, Selection Monday. The tradition. The suspense. The overwhelming Monday-ness of it all. 

It just doesn’t have the same ring as the big event that precedes it.   Why follow the men?  Why not have Selection Saturday?  Why does anyone make me do anything on a Monday? 

As airtight as these arguments are, Selection Monday is a cold reality, and the Maryland women’s basketball team will have to wait until then–a full 11 days after their final game–to find out whether they are going dancing. Early returns, however, are not encouraging.

After defeating North Carolina in the first round of the ACC tournament, the ladies lost a tough one to top-seeded Duke, 66-64, to finish (for now) at 19-12 overall and 6-10 in the conference. That Duke win probably would have gotten them in, but as it is, NCAA Women’s Bracketologist Charlie “I Hate Joe Lunardi” Creme has the Lady Terps in his first four out. Not good. Especially since all the women’s conference tourneys are over. Any upsets that would have shaken up the bubble have happened by now, and it’s clear it didn’t break in a good way for Maryland. (Big tourney runs from Iowa, Rutgers, and Vermont, for example, were probably detrimental for the Terps.) So unless the selection committee disagrees with the bracketologist — and really, who’s ever heard of such a thing? — the Lady Terps may be out of luck and out of chances. For dances.

But fear not, for all is not lost. As you might expect, the future looks bright for Brenda Frese’s young crew. Sophomore Lynetta Kizer made All-ACC third team, while Diandra Tchatchouang (free fake prize for anyone who can provide a prounciation key) made the all-freshman team. Congrats to them, and to all the Lady Terps. Even if they don’t go dancing, they made the most of a season that could have been a lot worse.

As you know, Maryland is your regular season ACC co-champ. But with March just underway, and with last night’s Oscars still fresh in our minds (btw, Hurt Locker=overrated), we’re just getting the trophy case warmed up. There are several other ACC awards–team and individual–up for grabs this week.  And this year’s awards season may be extra exciting.   Perhaps even, dare I say, history making.  Because the Terps may be poised to pull off the clean sweep.

The ACC’s major individual awards are player of the year, coach of the year, and rookie of the year. Agreed? Great. The major team honors, of course, are regular season and tournament champs. Winning all five of these awards would be an unprecedented accomplishment. Before ROY was established in 1976, North Carolina, Wake Forest, and Duke all swept the ACC tourney, COY, and POY. But since ‘76, the brooms have remained in the closet. Several teams have gotten within one; the last team to do so was the 1999-2000 Blue Devils, who were thwarted by Joe Forte(!) nabbing ROY.

But this week, the Terps have a decent chance to get it done, although it won’t be easy, especially because voters are involved. Let’s analyze their chances, starting with the highest probability of success:

Regular Season Title 

Check.  Doesn’t get much more high-probability than this.

Coach of the Year

The official ACC preseason media poll had Maryland finishing fifth. They finished tied for first. No one had them even sniffing the national top 25. As of today, they are in the top 20. The team was shaky early but righted the ship and tore through the ACC.  Their offense has improved.  Their defense has massively improved.  Under Williams’ tutelage, top player Greivis Vasquez has vanquished various demons to flourish in his senior season. Jordan Williams went from afterthought to ROY candidate (more on him below). If you have a better option for ACC coach of the year, I’m dying to hear it.

Player of the Year

Grevis Vasquez.  This case has been made many times in many places, so I won’t rehash it. Just look at the numbers, think about how strongly Vasquez and Maryland finished, and it’s clear. Barring a Roy Jones flashback, Vasquez is your 2009-2010 ACC Player of the Year.

ACC Tournament Championship

Unless my name is Helen Mirren, which it’s not (although she’s hot, just to give some credit where it’s due, if not especially relevant), Georgia Tech will be Maryland’s second-round matchup. The Yellow Jackets are surely still “stinging,” if you will, from their “buzz”er beater loss to the Terps, and could use another win to get a stronger position in the NCAA tournament. If the Terps win that one, they’ll likely get either Florida State or Clemson. Interestingly, both teams have won five of their last seven and are projected as eight seeds in the dance. The Noles are probably a better matchup for the Terps. The final opponent is going to be Duke. It just is. So a tough row to hoe, but not prohibitively so. This site gives Maryland a 19.4 percent chance of winning. Sounds about right.

Rookie of the Year

The toughest leg of the gauntlet. Credit Jordan Williams, though, for making this a two-man race, especially considering the other man, Derrick Favors, was on several preseason watch lists for national as well as ACC honors and is an NBA lottery lock whenever he comes out. Williams, by comparison, has played his way into the conversation by gradually evolving into an inside force. In other words, one has underacheived a bit, and one has overacheived. (Not to mention that one of their teams finished 13-3 in the conference and one team finished 7-9.)  To be fair, though, the stats don’t lie, and Favors has a clear (although not necessarily definitive) edge. Favors scores 11.9 ppg, while Williams gets 9.3.  Favors is third in the ACC with 8.4 rebounds per game; Williams is fourth with 8.3. Favors has two blocks per game while Williams has one. In their only head-to-head matchup this season, Favors won the individual battle with a monstrous 21 and 18; Williams finished with a respectable 9 and 12, and, of course, his team won the game. So Favors clearly has the numbers advantage, but Williams is an interesting dark horse because he has overacheived and his team has fared much better. 

So there you have it. As always, only time…will tell. But it seems that Maryland has the best shot to sweep the ACC awards season as any team in recent memory.

(FYI, this article is also posted on Bleacher Report.)

(Photo credit: AP via USA Today)

In at least one way, the #2 seed is a good thing.  The #1 seed plays Friday at noon…I don’t know about you, but I’m working then. Maryland will get the winner of Georgia Tech/UNC. If they win that game, they get the winner between Florida State and the winner of the first-round game between Clemson and N.C. State.

If they make it to the championship round, they will play Duke. Let’s just be real about it.

A complete schedule (including TV listings) is available here.

Let’s be honest. Maryland didn’t have any business winning this game. But the good news is, neither did Virginia. Maybe that’s what made this game so interesting. And by “interesting,” I mean “boring.”

But Maryland pulled it out, 74-68. Just another game permutation this group found a way to solve. That’s why they’re ACC regular season co-champions. To the points:

1. Play of the game: UVA coach Tony Bennett getting teed up while arguing a foul call with 38 seconds left, helping the Terps extend a one-point lead to five. This sums it all up.
2. Player of the game: There’s a senior – Greivis Vasquez? – who really stood out for me today. 23 points, 5 assists, 4 steals and 13 points in the final six minutes. The ACC player of the year just keeps on riding.
3. Although the teams ended up with respectable shooting numbers, there were plenty of scoring droughts in this one. In fact, you might say that, until the last eight minutes or so, the whole game was a scoring drought.
4. Maryland: 35 total rebounds, 17 offensive. UVA: 21 total rebounds, four offensive. I don’t care if they’re playing a little league water polo team. I will take that stat and I will like it.
5. This game was sleeeeeepy. For both sides. But when David Pearman pulled out that pillow and literally took a nap on the sideline, I was like, okay, that’s a little excessive.
6. I think Maryland’s malaise is justified, however. We all know about the Snowtorious three games in five days, but after today they’ve now played eight over the past 21 days. That includes the Georgia Tech double buzzer beater, the Virginia Tech three-hour delay double-overtime superjam and beer truck extravaganza, and the nail-biter over Duke on senior night. Think this club needs a break.
7. This is, of course, a lot less amusing if they lose. 
8. Which they might have done, had UVA top player Sylven Landesberg not been suspended right before the game for not living up to his academic obligations or whatever. Sorry Sylven. This can’t be welcome news for the learning centers that bear your name.
9. UVA might also have won if their most clutch player hadn’t been
   Will Sherrill. But I wouldn’t worry about Will. He’s going to make a fine constitutional law professor one day. 
10. It was funny when UVA guard Mustapha Farrakhan missed everything on a three and got the “air-ball!” chant. Plenty of Terp fans in attendance. It was like going to a Steelers game at FedEx Field. The constitutional law debate team must have been playing at the same time. Or maybe Maryland students look for any reason they can to visit a respectable college town. Either way.

See you in the ACC tournament!

(Photo credit: AP photo via The Baltimore Sun)