Jordan Williams

Greivis Vasquez, Gary Williams Win ACC Season Awards, Jordan Williams Finishes Second in Rookie Voting

On March 9, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Scott

“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.

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Can Maryland Sweep the ACC Basketball Awards Season?

On March 8, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Scott

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)

Tagged with: awards • Basketball • Gary Williams • Jordan Williams • postseasons • Vasquez

Maryland Beats Duke: The Instant YouTube Classics

On March 4, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Scott

The Vasquez shot, via D.C. Sports Bog:

A good solid nine minutes of grainy riot video (NSFW, unless your colleagues are sailors):

My favorite: Jordan Williams CRUSHING Jon “A twig has a better chance in the middle of a river” Scheyer

Tagged with: Basketball • Big Wins • f*ck Duke • Greivis Vasquez • Jon Scheyer • Jordan Williams • riots

A Duke-Maryland Recap in Ten Easily Digestible Bullet Points

On March 4, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Scott

If the Maryland men’s basketball team revealed today that they had X-Ray vision, the strength of 100 men, and a solution for ending gridlock in Congress, wouldn’t you believe them? I would. And not just because of their hard-fought 79-72 win over Duke last night. It’s because there doesn’t seem to be a mountain high enough to stop them right now. Want a buzzer beater? Done. Want two buzzer beaters? Come on, challenge us. Want us to come back from 13 down to win? No problem. Want us to win in one of the toughest gyms in the conference? Boom. Overtime? Check. Double overtime? Double check. And then last night, they coughed up a lead against their most hated rivals — and we’ve all seen that movie before — but kept their composure, kept fighting, and pulled it out on Senior Night. What a win. To the points:

FFFFFF***********CK DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUKE!!!!!!!!!!!

Barring a Roy Jones-level travesty, Greivis Vasquez is ACC player of the year. The D.C. Sports Bog posits that Vasquez’s game-clinching shot — over Jon Scheyer — followed by stopping Scheyer on the other end was the symbolic final nail. Oh, and he also had more points. And assists. And a better FG percentage. And a better FT percentage. And a better three-point percentage. And his team won the game.

For the record: Vasquez was clutch tonight. He didn’t used to be. He is now. In a way, this makes my A-Rod comparison stronger than ever. After years of struggle and doubt, both men have gotten the monkey off their backs. So there.

I heard the announcers mention that Maryland would get a share of the regular season title even if both teams win out. Duke would get top seed in the ACC tourney (that’s done by win %), but they would each get a banner (that’s done on records). If someone with more time and inclination on their hands is interested in confirming this, please be my guest. I’ll take Johnny Holiday’s word for it.

Maryland ran their offense last night very, very effectively. The screens were strong, the cuts were crisp, and most importantly, they forced their transition game and earned plenty of “run-outs,” or as we used to call them, “fast breaks.”

Duke stifled this during their late-first and second-half comeback by going to a zone. Maryland didn’t attack it.

Until, that is, a mysterious young man strode onto the court. Man by the name of Bowie. Adrian Bowie. He fearlessly threw himself into the teeth of the zone, slashing it to ribbons. Then he canned a wide-open three. Nine points on four-four shooting. It’s official. This man is Maryland’s X factor until further notice.

This was a huge victory and all, but was it really the kind of victory you riot in the streets over? Want to storm the court? Go for it. Whatever. But rioting? It’s so easy to picture all the Dookies, arms folded, smirks solidly in place, chuckling over how desperate we are to beat them. I know it’s a free country. And I admit to doing my share of it. But this one reminded me of the 2005 Washington Wizards, who printed T-shirts just for making the playoffs. Just felt a little superfluous is all.

All the seniors did their thing tonight. Milbourne was fairly quiet (as expected, given Duke’s physical bigs) but hit an early tone-setting three. Eric Hayes was — wait for it –

……wait…….for……..it………

steady. He was very steady.

The Jordan Williams Bandwagon continues to fill. Fifteen points, 11 boards, great D on Zoubek and the Lord Plumlee Brothers, two clutch free throws in the waning seconds. Another cap feather for the freshman who didn’t make a lot of preseason watch lists. Good luck with Durand Scott there, Andy Katz. Just kidding, Andy. I love you, baby. Text me.

OK, this was a few more than ten. But hey, it’s deserved. If the Terps take care of business against UVA, they’ll have a banner to hang (supposedly), then a relatively stress-free ACC tourney, and then The Dance. Selection Sunday is 11 days away.

(Photo credit: AP Photo/Nick Wass, former Diamondback photog, via Testudo Times)

Tagged with: Adrian Bowie • Basketball • Big Wins • Eric Hayes • f*ck Duke • Jordan Williams • riots • Vasquez

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

On February 18, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Scott

If you told me beforehand that Maryland would be down by 10 at halftime and Eric Hayes would not score in the game, let’s just say I probably would have told you to watch Shaun White instead. But the Terps fought off fatigue and perhaps a bit of complacency to rally and overcome bottom-dwelling N.C. State, 67-58, in Raleigh. To the points:

As many (including yours truly, yes, thanks so much) suspected, the Terps came out like a bowl of wet linguini. They took their lashes until Gary Williams tore the players a new corn chute early in the second half. Among the printable excerpts: “I have difficulty believing you are down 12 to a team that I daresay, if I may be assured of your confidences, I do not hold in inordinately high esteem.” No one looked back from there.
MVP: Take a guess. On a night when the team’s second, third, and fourth leading scorers combined for 12 points, Vasquez delivered with 26 and 6 assists. I know I’ve been critical — and concerns remain — but is there another ACC team with a player so critical to their fortunes? Could Jon Scheyer beat Vasquez one on one? I don’t think so either. I’m not one for hyperbole, but what can you say? Vasquez for ACC player of the year.
Mosley and Hayes need to deslumpify, and fast. More on them later. (UPDATE: Or how about now? Woo, magic.)
A win heals all wounds, but man, was that first half ugly. It’s like they were moving in syrup. Defensively, they seemed to be rotating a full beat behind the Pack. They tried to compensate with aggressive help, but left shooters open in the process. I’m just glad they never instituted that “we’re only gonna play one half now” rule.
Vasquez was my MVP, but for a long stretch in the first half, Jordan Williams carried this team. He finished with 19 points (7-10 shooting) and 11 boards while holding now-you-see-him-now-you-don’t Tracy Smith to 10 and 6. But even that doesn’t tell the whole story. For a full quarter, Williams was Maryland’s go-to guy.
Just when I’m ready to bury Adrian Bowie, he gets an arm out of the dirt. Still, he’s a bit shaky as a distributor. Is he really starting at point next season?
I’m not a big fan of the press, but it worked to great effect last night. I guess it helps when the opposing point guard has nearly a 1:1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
I’ve alluded to this already, but this has my vote for Gary Williams’ best coaching job of the year. He just didn’t let them give up.
They better do some serious sleeping between now and Saturday. And I mean a looooooot of sleep. Georgia Tech’s not going to be easy, even at home.
As this column astutely notes, Maryland will get to 10 ACC wins if they just keep beating the beatable teams. (Hey, that’s my column for Bleacher Report! What a happy accident.) In other words, the Terps can make the tourney without a “signature win,” which is good, because they currently have zero of those unless you count FSU. Now in one word: Phew!

(Photo credit: AP photo via The Baltimore Sun)

Tagged with: Adrian Bowie • Basketball • Eric Hayes • Gary Williams • Jordan Williams • Sean Mosley • Vasquez

A Maryland-N.C. State Basketball Preview from ESPN Sports Guy Bill Simmons

On February 17, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Scott

Sometimes in life, you learn something that, as you hear it, is unsurprising to the point of being almost reassuring. For example, when I first heard that one of the athletes in this year’s Winter Olympics was actually competing while pregnant, the thought that immediately went through my head was “Curling. It has to be curling. How can it not be curling? She has to be a curler.”

And sure enough, she is. I was right, and all was right with the world.

(I actually don’t have anything against curling. In fact, a few of my old friends were into curling, and I used to enjoy going to their matches because there was always a bar there, and the spectators and curlers would get plastered together. It’s just part of the curling culture. We should really institute an Olympics of Sports That Serve As Excuses to Drink. You could have curling, ice fishing, any other kind of fishing, golf, or anything involving cards or dice. This could happen. It’s not like NBC has a ton else going on. This is why we should clear out the dead Zuckerwood and make me the new president of NBC. Why not? Sign my online petition! www.seriouslyIreallythinkIcouldbepresidentofNBC.com)

I don’t normally get into college basketball — mainly because there’s no Trade Machine — but some more of these so-unsurprising-it’s-reassuring facts (which for confusion’s sake I will refer to as SUIR facts from here on out) emerged for me a few days ago when I began my annual bracketology crash course. After all, March is just around the corner, people.

I was talking with a famous friend of mine who I won’t name — let’s just refer to him as Jim Kimmel — and he clued me in that Duke was on top in the ACC. There’s SUIR fact number two. Along with Wake Forest, the Blue Devils are already trying on dresses for the big dance. But despite the assertions that the ACC is down, the conference will still probably get six or more teams into the tournament. Among those now on the bubble are Clemson, FSU, Ga. Tech, Va. Tech, and a little team called the Maryland Terrapins.

And there’s SUIR fact number three.

The Terps are one of the most bubbleicious teams in the country. Never quite a lock, never quite dead. Greivis Vasquez and company recovered from a classic Grade B Level Two Combination Head Trauma/Explosive Diarrhea Loss last Saturday to the hated Dookies by absolutely murdering a decent Virginia team in College Park on Monday. Now, they make their second trip to North Carolina in four days (as part of a snow-related schedule adjustment that has them playing four games in a week, which the selection committee, to their credit, has taken note of) to play a dying-quail N.C. State squad.

If conventional wisdom holds, the 17-7 Terrapins will need to win at least three more games to get 20 wins overall, 10 wins in the conference, and a tourney berth. A win on the road, even against the unspectacular Pack, would be helpful, as the Terps are 5-6 away from Crappy Cable Provider Center (12-1 at home) and face a tough remaining home slate of Georgia Tech, Clemson, and Duke. So holding serve won’t be a cake walk from here on in.

The fact that Maryland is 2-6 against opponents with top-50 RPIs (2-7 if you count William and Mary, which ranks 51) means the Terps don’t have a lot of margin for error. If they take care of business against “beatable” opponents like N.C. State and Virginia Tech, then get at least one of their final three home games, that should be enough. Given this, and given that the Terps are 15-0 against “lesser” opponents, and given that they beat N.C. State by 24 in their first season meeting, the Terps should victimize the Pack tonight.

But that leads me to SUIR fact number four, and reason no. 324 why I love sports: You just never know.

I will now light myself on fire.

I can see all you Maryland fans making The Manning Face out there. It just proves my Andy Dufresne Corrolary, which follows that any team without a major championship or similar accomplishment within the past ten years that directly succeed the achievement of said accomplishment are frustrated to the point of making strange noises and expressions that influence their teams toward negative outcomes in minor situations, thus increasing the likelihood of the opponents of these teams paying off on prop bets. So if you happen to be in Vegas this weekend, bet the house against Maryland winning the tip-off. It’s all in my book, now available on Amazon. You can thank me later.

As for tonight, the matchups and issues remain much the same as they were for the first game. Jordan Williams and Dino Gregory again need to lock up All-ACC candidate Tracy Smith in the post, who has averaged 18 points and 6.6 rebounds since the loss to Maryland, including most recently a 20 and 5 in a loss to UNC. Gregory, in particular, prevented Smith from getting comfortable in the low post…Dino has been struggling of late, however, so a big game from him will be key. Dennis Horner and Maryland blood enemy Javier Gonzalez remain the Pack’s second- and third-leading scorers, respectively, but because of respective lack of athleticism and size, they are fairly easy covers for Maryland’s dynamic guards. On the flip side, N.C. State had no answer for Maryland’s guards and small forwards, who combined for 53 points on 15-32 shooting while holding Horner to four.

But here’s where it gets slightly interesting. N.C. State is 2-9 in the conference and desparately needs a win for pride, and possibly to quell the hot seat coach Sidney Lowe finds himself on. Maryland, as noted, is playing its third game in five days, with a Saturday showdown with Georgia Tech looming. And this is Vasquez’s first visit to Raleigh since hitting a meaningless three at the end of the Terps’ victory last year, which he later said he did to quiet the Wolfpack fans, who he claimed were making racist remarks. I don’t see that action making the Pack fans any quieter. Bottom line: Maryland may have a fairly low energy level for this one. N.C. State will not.

But still, I mean, how is this not a breeze for Maryland? How? How is it possible? They should get this win under their belt, then move on to a tough final stretch that will determine their postseason fate. Then again, that’s why we watch sports: you just never know.

I’m sorry this was so short.

Prediction: Maryland 93, N.C. State 70

Game starts at 9 p.m. and will be televised in D.C. on Comcast SportsNet-Plus (CSN- Regular will join the game in progress after the Wizards telecast).The game can also be heard on WJZ-FM (105.7) and WJZ-AM (1300) in B-more and WGTB-FM (94.7) in D.C.

(Photo credit: Rocking the Suburbs)

Tagged with: Basketball • Bill Simmons • Dennis Horner • Dino Gregory • ESPN • Jordan Williams • N.C. State • Special guest bloggers • The Media • Tracy Smith • Vasquez

uva at maryland basketball recap in five easily digestible bullet points

On February 16, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Ian

Thank you, UVA. Thank you. The chips were down. The Terps were feeling low. You came to town and gave them just what they needed, and then you left, no questions asked. You didn’t even resist. It’s like you knew just the right buttons to push to get Maryland back on its feet. The day after Valentine’s Day can now be a fond memory. Let’s recap it, shall we?

GREI-VIS VAS-QUEZ! Greivis was on fire, shooting 10/13 FG in the first half. His 25 PTS in the first half were nearly as many (34) as the Cavaliers had altogether. Virginia had no answer for Greivis, and he put the dagger in early. Final line on Greivis: 30 PTS/8 RB/5 AST. Maryland needed it’s leader to step-up, and he responded by putting his foot on the throat of a conference rival, effectively ending their chances of a tournament appearance.
The Cavalier’s defenses were down. UVA’s vaunted pack-line defense looked more like a dotted line. UVA had coach Tony Bennett said of his team’s defensive play, “There were so many holes in it tonight.” So many holes that Maryland shot 70% FG in the first half, and 56% FG for the game.
Maryland won with a team game. The Terps finished with 22 AST on 36 FGM and 12 OREB. They were sharing the rock and crashing the boards. Combine that with lights out shooting, and Maryland was unbeatable last night.
Jordan Williams bounced back from a Fresmanlike performance against The Unmentionables with 11 PTS and 11 RB. It was a solid effort, and it showed that the kid can forget the bad days and move on. That’s a good sign developmentally.
It was good to be home. Maryland is now 12-1 at home, and their average margin of victory at the Comcast Center is 19 PPG. When you’re an average team in a tough conference, it is of utmost importance to defend your home court. The Terps made a living off that for years at Cole Field House. If this season is any indication, there might be the beginnings of a new tradition of excellence at home starting with2010.

Last night, Maryland succeeded in picking up the pieces from Saturday’s loss. They got their rebound. They’re back on the horse. The Terps still need a few more wins to solidify a tournament bid.

Next notch in the bedpost: NC State on Wednesday.

Tagged with: Basketball • Comcast Center • Greivis Vasquez • Jordan Williams • Tony Bennett • UVA

A Maryland-Duke Basketball Recap in Ten Easily Digestible Bullet Points

On February 13, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Scott

Another big game for Maryland, another chance for an indisputable resume builder, another letdown. This time it was a 77-56 loss to no. 8 Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Some points:

Hey, look at it this way. Last year the Terps lost by 41 in Cameron. So does that mean they’re twice as good this year? I say yes. I don’t have much.
Sure, Duke played well. But make no mistake: Maryland had the capacity to win this game and just lost it.
The Vasquez line: 17 points on 7-12 shooting, 7 boards, 4 assists, 3 turnovers, 4 fouls. Not bad, until you consider that 14 of those points came (a) when the team was down by at least 20, or (b) during one all-too-familiar, too-little, too-late mini-run midway through the second half that chopped Duke’s lead to a razor-thin margin of 10. In other words, when the game was actually “competitive,” he had 3 points. A-Rod lives.
But let me not lay all this at Vasquez’s feet. Jordan Williams reminded me today that he is, indeed, still a freshman. He finished with a decent 6 points and 7 boards, but let Duke’s frontcourt run wild, especially Brian Zoubek, whose 16 and 17 were ever so slightly above his season average of 6 and 5. Tough game for Jordan, but he’ll be back.
Speaking of coming back, Dino Gregory, you can’t see me right now, because you’re unconscious, but I’ve got one paddle on the A and one paddle on the N. Clear! Seriously, three points on 0-3 shooting and three rebounds, plus some very shaky defense, is not what you want to see. Someone please find this man some confidence.
Maryland turnovers: 14. Duke turnovers: 7.
I’ve already touched on Vasquez, but the other seniors weren’t helping. Eric Hayes’ Cameron woes continued with 8 points (2 in second half), 3 assists, and 4 TOs, while Landon Milbourne chipped in a dismal two points on 1-6 shooting and three boards…his worst game of the season in the biggest game of the season. I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again: what good is senior leadership if they don’t lead when they are needed the most?
Maryland played with no urgency. Is it possible to look past Duke?
Maryland is a bunch of stupid cornswaggling mugglefragging yellow belly underacheiving underperforming chokers. How’s that for hardcore analysis. I’m sick of going out to watch Duke games and rooting for Maryland, year after year, only to face the inevitable walk of shame through a little pocket of smirking Duke fans who always find a way to position themselves between me and the exits. VOMMMMITTTT.
This isn’t a season killer, and with Virginia et al on the horizon we have other things to focus on now. But still. After this, it feels like the best-case scenario is another humble second-round exit. You can’t just beat Longwood 100 times and wonder why you’re not an elite team. Eventually, you have to show up in the big spots or you’re just another dog sitting on the porch, watching.

Tagged with: Basketball • Dino Gregory • Eric Hayes • fu*k Duke • Jordan Williams • Vasquez

maryland beats florida state in a game of four-on-four

On February 5, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Ian

The Terps survived a horrendous first half by coming out hot after intermission, and won 71-67 in Tallahassee yesterday. If yesterday’s win at Florida State proved anything, it proved that Maryland can win ugly. In the first half Maryland seemed stuck in the same fog they were in at Clemson earlier in the week. How did they snap out of it? Let’s go to the Porsche Keys to the Win:

Vasquez (23), Milbourne (18), Williams (14), and Hayes (12) had 67 of the Terps 71 points. The rest of the team was 0-10 from the field for 4 PTS. This was the second game in a row where the bench was nonexistent. Luckily, Florida State performed a similar disappearing act. The Noles got 58 points out of four players and nine out of the rest. On Thursday night, Maryland’s best four outperformed Florida State’s best four.
At the start of the game Florida State was able to dictate the pace, turning the game into a helter skelter track meet and trapping the Terps into turnovers. Maryland managed just 25 points by half time, but they were still only down four points. At halftime, Gary Williams made the adjustments necessary to get the Terps into their set offense, and the team rattled off seven unanswered points right away to take a four point lead. As is often the case, Gary Williams out-coached his opponent.
From there, the Terps were able to maintain a lead for most of the second half, until the very end of the game when Jordan Williams had to start sitting due to foul trouble. The Seminoles tied the game with three minutes left, and suddenly, the crowd was back in it. Who was going to step up? Dino Gregory,that’s who! That’s right, Dino freaking Gregory comes out of nowhere, takes a charge, and Vasquez sinks a couple of FT’s to preserve the lead. Dino was an unlikely hero after he was largely absent for most of the game, but that key play enabled the Terps to win the game. Overall, the game was that close. It could have gone either way. Kudos to Dino for shaking off the rust and making a big stop.
I love me some Greivis. Just when the haters started screaming at their TV’s and secretly hoping Greivis would blow it, Vasquez turns it on with a running jumper and forces a couple of fouls to keep the scoring going. His final line – 23 PTS /7 RB/7 AST – was pretty close to a triple-double. You may howl over his five turnovers but most of them came off of some tight traps, and he was better than a 1/1 AST/TO ratio on the night, so that’s a good line. I love how he incited the crowd from the opening tip. He thrives on the hate, so keep hating bitches. GREAT JOB GREIVIS! M-V-P! M-V-P!
It was a nice night for Milbourne. He was, once again, Steady Eddie when the rest of the team started crapping themselves. 18 PTS and 6 RB (including 4 huge ORB) doesn’t tell the story of how he continually stepped up on both sides of the ball. He’s the yin to Grevis’s yang. Landon is such a tweener that I didn’t think that he had a lot of pro upside coming into this season, but the more of these clutch ACC games he has, the more looks he’s going to get from teams that have a need at the small forward position. That is how well Milbourne is playing right now.
I’ve said before that Jordan Williams is the missing piece to the Terps puzzle for success, and this game just proved the point. With Williams (14 PTS, 7/11 FG, 6 RB, 2 blocks) in the game, Maryland looked confident in their sets, and they were able to work the ball inside out against a couple of big dudes from Florida State. Without him, the front court looked small and disorganized. How high is Williams’s upside? I the Terps will be his show by next season. Reports are that he is a humble hard worker that likes to learn. If he can continue to learn and hit the gym to chisel that big frame, I can see Williams becoming a first round NBA draft pick in a few years.

It wasn’t pretty, but a win is a win is a win is a win. The team turned it around in the second half and started shooting the ball very well. That should bode well for this Sunday’s game against UNC.

Tagged with: Basketball • Dino Gregory • Eric Hayes • Greivis Vasquez • Jordan Williams • Landon Milbourne

A Maryland-Clemson Basketball Recap in Ten Easily Digestible Bullet Points

On February 1, 2010, In Maryland sports, By Scott

Ugggh. Must. Purge. Game. From. Body. Please pass the ipecac, leeches, portable sauna, and electroshock nodes. After Maryland lost to Clemson 62-53 in one of the sloppiest games in recent memory, I need a reset. To the points:

Maryland played excellent team defense on Trevor Booker (10 points on 2-16 shooting). Too bad, though, that the focus on Booker meant Jerai Grant was wide open and free to score a career-high 18 points, many of which came on dunks.
By and large, Maryland’s strategy of collapsing in the middle and making a Demontez Stitt-less Clemson team beat them from the perimeter was effective. After all, they did hold the Tigers to 62 points, including 22 percent shooting beyond the arc. It’s just unfortunate that Maryland only managed 53 points and 20 percent shooting from three. Kind of a slight problem there.
This was the sloppiest game of Maryland’s season. Twenty-six turnovers, 22 fouls. What’s the holdup on the ipecac?!?!
Clemson repeatedly — repeatedly — shredded Maryland’s press, which I suppose coach Williams decided to use because Stitt was out. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I do not like the press.
I have a question. What good is a “veteran presence” and “senior leadership” if it goes away in big spots? Landon Milbourne (3 points, 5 rebounds) gets something of a pass because he’s not really a natural post player and struggles against physical bigs like Booker and Grant. Eric Hayes (11 pts on 4-7 shooting, 2 assts, 5 turnovers, 4 fouls) and Mr. Greivis Vasquez (10 pts on 3-11 shooting, 2 assts, 3 rebs, 4 fouls, NINE turnovers) have no such excuse.
The That-Sums-It-All-Up Play of the game came at about the 14-minute mark in the second half. With Tanner Smith in his shorts (and credit where it’s due: Smith did a great job on Vasquez all evening), Vasquez tries a completely unnecessary behind-the-back dribble, which skitters off his foot and rolls toward the out-of-bounds line. Smith, who was hustling, dives toward the ball. Vasquez decides that simply falling on Smith is the best way to make something happen. Third personal foul.
Which brings me to today’s rant. There’s a good Vasquez and a bad Vasquez. A Gollum and a Smeagol, if you will. And last night we had a big-time Gollum sighting. Vasquez has had a great season, no question. And sure, a guy who gets 15 points, 5 boards, and 6 assists per game is valuable. But again, how valuable is it really if it evaporates when the pressure is on? When he wasn’t sitting on the bench with foul trouble, how many times last night did Vasquez drive into the lane, leap into the air, and lob a wrap-around pass out of bounds? How many times did he (and Hayes) dribble directly into the teeth of the Clemson press? Where was the Vasquez Shimmy last night? This all clearly had a trickle-down effect for his teammates; Adrian Bowie and Dino Gregory, in particular, were basket cases out there. Don’t you think they could have benefited from some of that Vasquez fearlessness? Or does that fearlessness only exist against the Miamis and Boston Colleges of the world? Bottom line: Vasquez has some decidedly A-Roddian tendencies. If Maryland is up 15, he’s raining threes and shimmying around like he’s in a Rihanna video. And don’t talk to me about North Carolina last year…great game, but they were the underdogs. Thus, no pressure. If Maryland is going to fulfill its potential, which is considerable, Vasquez needs to put the cape on and deliver when his team needs him the most. Isn’t that what being a senior leader and All-ACC candidate is all about?
Obviously, every game is important, and blah blah blah, but this one was a particularly good barometer for how this Maryland team will perform against legit opponents. Because of their tendency to get overwound in big games like this one, I believe there’s a ceiling on what this group can do.
Enough bad stuff. Hey, what about Jordan Williams? A career game for the ever-improving freshman. In addition to some outstanding defense on Booker, he got 13 points and 13 rebounds, including some authoritative finishes at the rim.
We’ll see if Maryland can get back on the horse this Thursday in Tallahassee against a Florida State team that would love to even the season series with the Terps.

Tagged with: Bad Losses • Basketball • Clemson • Eric Hayes • Jerai Grant • Jordan Williams • Landon Milbourne • Trevor Booker • Vasquez

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