MBB: Duke vs. Maryland Pre-Game and In-Game Thread

[gw67]

I realize that many posters are probably looking past Saturday’s game with Maryland to the upcoming game with Wake next week. However, since I have seen the Terps play several times this year I decided to provide some thoughts on the Terps and Saturday’s matchup:

• This is not your typical Maryland team. Due to major weaknesses with their inside game, they start and generally play four perimeter players and an undersized center. For many years, Williams has used the flex offense and has played an inside-out game. Not so this year. They still use the flex in their half court offense but they lack the back-to-the-basket players needed to make it work. As a result, the half court offense often evolves into a mid-major jump shooting offense plus drives to the hoop by Bowie and Vasquez.
• Playing a mid-major jump shooting game would not be terrible if they had some shooters. Bowie is one of the most improved players in the ACC and is terrific driving to the hoop, however, he is shooting 28% from three and went over a month in the season without making a 3-point shot. Mosley is a good defensive player and rebounder from the guard position but his shooting range is about three feet. On top of this, Vasquez is in a shooting slump like Scheyer and Smith. In the last five games, he is 5 for 30 from three-point land.
• The Terps rely on their defense to turn the ball over and to get points off these turnovers. In two of the games they lost, they got large leads in the first half because of points off turnovers but eventually lost the lead when the other team adjusted to their press and began feeding the ball to the post for easy baskets and then making open threes when the Terps reacted and tried to provide help inside.
• Even with the above issues, they could easily be 15-3 at this stage of the season because they play as a team, share the ball and put forth a big effort on the defensive side of the ball and on the boards.
• A couple of strengths are ballhandling and foul shooting. They start three point guards and share the position during the game. They shoot 79% from the foul line although the shooting of some of the reserves is abysmal.
• Even though he is in a shooting slump, Vasquez has backed up his 2nd team All ACC selection last year with another good year. He leads the team in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals, and his A/TO is an excellent 1.8.
• Many of us worry about the wear and tear on Singler (6-8, 235) playing inside. Well, Milbourne at 6-7, 205 plays the same position and has battled against bigger players all year.

I see where Pomeroy picks the Devils by 18. That seems reasonable to me. I expect the Terps to play hard but their lack of size and the disparity in talent will be too great to keep it close, IMO. Perhaps some of the posters will get to see Williams, Pocius, Plumlee and even Czyz play a few more minutes than normal.

gw67

[roywhite]

Thanks for the preview, gw...

I fully expect the Terps to play hard and well against the Blue Devils; they nearly always do.

[jv001]

You did not mention Eric Hayes in your post. How is he playing this year. If I'm correct he avgd 10 pts per game last year. With Vasquez, Bowie and Hayes MD has 3 good guards. With the lack of inside players I can see why Gary is playing this kind of lineup. Once again thanks for the post. I have not seem them play this year. Go Duke!

[gw67]

jv001 – Per your question, Hayes starts and plays major minutes. He is averaging 10 ppg and has played well in their two conference wins. Last year he was hampered with an ankle injury for the last half of the season. His defensive play has improved and he, Vasquez and Mosley took turns shutting down Landesberg in the Virginia game. The other starter that I didn’t mention is Neal. He is about 6-6 and can’t jump (not a great combination for your center). Nevertheless he can hit an occasional three and is a good passer.

There are a couple of differences in their play that I didn’t mention. First, they don’t have a shot blocker. Generally, the Terps lead the conference in shots blocked per game. That is not the case this year. I expect Henderson, Scheyer and Singler to drive to the hoop often. In the past, the Terps strictly played man-to-man defense. They have played some zone since the conference games began.

gw67

[pfrduke]

• Playing a mid-major jump shooting game would not be terrible if they had some shooters. Bowie is one of the most improved players in the ACC and is terrific driving to the hoop, however, he is shooting 28% from three and went over a month in the season without making a 3-point shot. Mosley is a good defensive player and rebounder from the guard position but his shooting range is about three feet. On top of this, Vasquez is in a shooting slump like Scheyer and Smith. In the last five games, he is 5 for 30 from three-point land.

Following up on this point, Maryland is the worst shooting team in the ACC. They hit just 46.2% of their 2s and 31.8% of their 3s, good for 228th and 245th nationally, respectively.

Vasquez's shooting slump has actually gotten his 3pt% back to normal. He's never been a strong shooter (although he is a rather prolific one) - in 2007 from 3 he was 31-98 (.316), in 2008 he was 64-207 (.309), and thus far this year he's 31-101 (.307).

Also, Maryland being a jump-shooting team has also kept them off the free throw line. They're 306th in the country in FT Rate (measures frequency in getting to the line; free throw attempts divided by field goal attempts). This doubly hurts the Terps because they generally have excellent free throw shooters - their .789 at the line is 6th in the country and best in the ACC.

[Wander]

Vasquez will get an eight-topple double and Maryland will still lose by 20.

[JDev]

Maryland, Vasquez in particular, loves to play at Cameron, and Cameron's notoriously soft rims might help UM's shooting percentage. That being said, if Duke is playing defense at the same high level, the rims don't matter a bit. Duke is just a lot better and they might be playing for the number one ranking (whatever that is worth at this point in the season, but still a nice caveat).

[Virginian]

Let's not kid ourselves. Duke SHOULD win this by 20. But every time Md. plays us they play us strong. It is THE GAME for Md. Their game against Duke is the ONLY game they care about. They could lose 25 games in a season and never go to the NCAAs again, but will count it a successful season if they beat Duke once. Their standard, every-game chant is "(f-word) Duke." They use it every game and the entire game and are unbelievably proud of that fact.

They will come to play. Gary will have them primed with a white-hot hatred of Duke and all things Duke. If they beat us they will burn down half of College Park and turn over cars and assault police. If they lose they will burn down half of College Park and turn over cars and assault police.

They are the most ridiculous program with the stupidest fans and in all of Div. I basketball. But they will give us a game for sure, and they may very well win. You think NC State gave us a scare? You ain't seen nothing yet.

Mark my words.

[bjornolf]

I think they're tied for the most wins by a visiting team in Cameron over the last decade. They were saying on the radio here in DC this morning that they've won four, as has UNC. Since 2000, they have the same overall regular season record, 6-8, against us as UNC does, also the best of any team that plays Duke regularly. So never overlook the Terps when they're playing us.

[geraldsneighbor]

I think we should just follow Morgan St.'s game plan vs. MD.

[merry]

I realize that many posters are probably looking past Saturday’s game with Maryland to the upcoming game with Wake next week...

Uh, you're kidding, right? These "many posters" you refer to must be fans of very short memory! I think Maryland must hold the record, at least in this decade, for the ACC team that most often beats Duke when not favored to do so. Sure we "should" beat them but when has that ever meant anything?

As for Gary, I say we make him sweat!

[geraldsneighbor]

Uh, you're kidding, right? These "many posters" you refer to must be fans of very short memory! I think Maryland must hold the record, at least in this decade, for the ACC team that most often beats Duke when not favored to do so. Sure we "should" beat them but when has that ever meant anything?

As for Gary, I say we make him sweat!

Who sweats more..Gary or Seth Greenberg? I haven't seen anyone sweat that bad since Patrick Ewing retired.

[WeepingThomasHill]

I also live in DC and am have been able to see the Terps play a few times. This is not a good team. Unlike the past few seasons, Sweaty does not have several bigs that he can rotate in - his bigs have given us fits since the early part of this decade, from Lonny Baxter through Bambale "I have 10 Cars" Osby.

They don't match up well with us this year - Henderson and Singler, particularly. While in past years General Grevius has torched us with his helter-skelter knifing drives to the rim, Smith is just as quick and rangy and should slow him down. Dave Neal should be playing for Towson or UMBC, not logging major minutes in the ACC. Bowie and Milbourne are simply complementary players.

I like Duke to win by 15 or so - it should be more, but as others have noted, including Bornolf, Sweaty always gets his team up to play us - this is their National Championship. Unfortunately for Gary, it is in January.

[geraldsneighbor]

Here we go with the "Georgetown wasn't that good" talk.

[MB in MD]

Let's not kid ourselves. Duke SHOULD win this by 20. But every time Md. plays us they play us strong. It is THE GAME for Md. Their game against Duke is the ONLY game they care about. They could lose 25 games in a season and never go to the NCAAs again, but will count it a successful season if they beat Duke once. Their standard, every-game chant is "(f-word) Duke." They use it every game and the entire game and are unbelievably proud of that fact.

They will come to play. Gary will have them primed with a white-hot hatred of Duke and all things Duke. If they beat us they will burn down half of College Park and turn over cars and assault police. If they lose they will burn down half of College Park and turn over cars and assault police.

They are the most ridiculous program with the stupidest fans and in all of Div. I basketball. But they will give us a game for sure, and they may very well win. You think NC State gave us a scare? You ain't seen nothing yet.

Mark my words.

Living up here in Terpland and having to deal with Maryland fans day in and day out I would have to say I agree with almost everything in this post. Except that if MD loses they won't burn down College Park this time. Maryland fans are as somber as I have ever seen them, and have much less energy than in most years in anticipation of the Duke matchup. Maybe that will change when Duke comes up here to play them, but right now none of the fans I've talked to is even thinking about an upset in Cameron.

Having said that, the fans aren't the players, and they are still an emotional lot, especially Vasquez, who everyone here says is both Maryland's best player and worst player. If we don't play with emotion, we can be had.

[dukestheheat]

gw-

That is an excellent synopsis and thank you for your work on this. I do indeed detest the fanbase at Maryland so I hope we win by 30 points.

dukestheheat

[merry]

Dave Neal should be playing for Towson or UMBC, not logging major minutes in the ACC. Bowie and Milbourne are simply complementary players.

Pretty sure you just guaranteed that at least one of these guys will have a career game on Saturday.

[WeepingThomasHill]

If we can't defend Dave Neal on Saturday, we have bigger problems...

On the other hand, we should be very afraid of Jin Kim, who is poised for a breakout game.

[gw67]

Some additional thoughts on Terps:

• DBR did not link this morning’s Post article on game- http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/22/AR2009012203853.html?sub=AR
• IMO, Vasquez is not providing locker room material (as if Coach K needs it) when he says CIS is his house. He loves playing in front of a great crowd whether at home or on the road.
• Regarding the comment that Neal should be playing at Towson. He was told when he accepted the scholarship that he probably wouldn’t play much during his career. To his credit, he has lost some weight, gotten in better shape and has fulfilled a need this year. He gives them good effort every game and doesn’t make many mental or physical mistakes.
• Hayes, Milbourne and Bowie are complimentary players much like Smith, Paulus, McClure and Thomas. All three are ACC quality players.
• Jin-Soo Kim gets fewer minutes than Williams of Duke but, like Williams, I see a bright future for Kim. Offensively, he has the makings of the whole package. Defensively, he needs to get stronger and get more experience playing against better competition than he faced in high school.
• With regard to Maryland fans, it is often a mistake to paint with too wide a brush. I agree that many are idiots. I don’t visit their site as often as I once did because several of their posters are ignorant and mean spirited toward their own players. However, living in the area, I work with, live by, socialize with and play golf with Maryland alums who are good folks. I even married one although she stopped following basketball when Lefty was pushed out.
• Lastly, Williams has done a good job coaching this year’s team. I doubt that any coach in the ACC could have gotten more out of them. Before the season started, I expected about 15 wins if a couple of the big men didn’t step up (they haven’t). It appears that 18-19 wins may be possible. My Maryland buddies don’t think that he is in trouble unless the team unravels.

gw67

[Virginian]

There is constant talk around D.C. that Gary Williams is on his way out. It has even surfaced in the local papers.

The knock on him is NOT that he can't coach. The complaint (correct or not) is that he cannot or will not recruit. The naysayers point out that it doesn't matter whether he can coach or not (he can) if he can't get the players needed to beat UNC, Duke, Clemson, etc. His one great team that went to two final fours and won a national championship is seen as a fluke recruiting success.

All this may be unfair, but if Maryland keeps missing the NCAAs and continues to be a second-tier team in the ACC (even with its once-a-season win over UNC or Duke), Gary's not going to survive much longer. At least that's the conventional wisdom.

Personally, if Md. is going to continue to be a mediocre team I'm happy to see Williams hang in there.

[gw67]

Steve Yanda is the Post beat writer for Maryland basketball. He has a blog and his article linked below covers several of the individual matchups and gets input from Florida State associate head coach Stan Jones. He makes the point that many on this board have made. The offense goes through Singler not Smith or Paulus.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/terrapins-insider/2009/01/a_good_matchup_for_the_terps.html#more

gw67

[geraldsneighbor]

There is constant talk around D.C. that Gary Williams is on his way out. It has even surfaced in the local papers.

The knock on him is NOT that he can't coach. The complaint (correct or not) is that he cannot or will not recruit. The naysayers point out that it doesn't matter whether he can coach or not (he can) if he can't get the players needed to beat UNC, Duke, Clemson, etc. His one great team that went to two final fours and won a national championship is seen as a fluke recruiting success.

All this may be unfair, but if Maryland keeps missing the NCAAs and continues to be a second-tier team in the ACC (even with its once-a-season win over UNC or Duke), Gary's not going to survive much longer. At least that's the conventional wisdom.

Personally, if Md. is going to continue to be a mediocre team I'm happy to see Williams hang in there.

Agree. I can't stand their progrum but that win over him last year at Comcast, after being down 9 at halftime was special. Doing it against them made it all the better.

[UrinalCake]

With as much talent as there is coming out of the DC area, it's understandable why UMD fans are disappointed at all the recruiting misses that have happened. IIRC, one recent recruit who chose another school flat-out stated that Williams opted to send his assistants when other head coaches showed up in person to recruit him. Fair or not, Williams needs to bring in some high-profile recruits if he wants to keep his job. The good news (for him) is that it really only takes one or two big-name players to turn things around.

[SMO]

With as much talent as there is coming out of the DC area, it's understandable why UMD fans are disappointed at all the recruiting misses that have happened. IIRC, one recent recruit who chose another school flat-out stated that Williams opted to send his assistants when other head coaches showed up in person to recruit him. Fair or not, Williams needs to bring in some high-profile recruits if he wants to keep his job. The good news (for him) is that it really only takes one or two big-name players to turn things around.

How much do you think Georgetown's resurgence has hurt MD recruiting?

[gw67]

The Hoyas have had a minor impact, IMO. The top players, Durant, Beasley, Lawson and Green left town. Summers would have helped in the front court. Freeman may have helped on wing although the Terps have perimeter players. The Terps staff thought that Dupree would be a strong inside player and he has been a major disappointment to date. They also counted on some combination of Gilchrist, Walker and Burney to support Dupree. Two of those players are gone and the remaining player, Burney, has been injured most of his time at College Park.

There are two big men recruits coming in next year. Who knows how long it will take for them to adjust to the college game.

I suspect that influential alums may put pressure on Yow to replace him if they don't make the NCAAT but his buyout is not peanuts in these days of tight money and it will cost them plenty to get a coach who can compete in the ACC. The other factor is that many alums don't trust Yow to make a good choice.

This makes the season even that more interesting. Besides, this weekend should be fun - Duke vs Maryland game, dinner with old friends at one of our favorite restaurants, and attendance at the golf show.

gw67

[JDev]

With as much talent as there is coming out of the DC area, it's understandable why UMD fans are disappointed at all the recruiting misses that have happened. IIRC, one recent recruit who chose another school flat-out stated that Williams opted to send his assistants when other head coaches showed up in person to recruit him. Fair or not, Williams needs to bring in some high-profile recruits if he wants to keep his job. The good news (for him) is that it really only takes one or two big-name players to turn things around.

A good portion of Duke's 2010 class comes from in and around UM and Gary's backyard and an area they should recruit hard. Andre Dawkins is a VA kid from Chesapeake, and Joshua Hairston is a northern VA kid who plays AAU out of DC.

[Madrasdukie]

A good portion of Duke's 2010 class comes from in and around UM and Gary's backyard and an area they should recruit hard. Andre Dawkins is a VA kid from Chesapeake, and Joshua Hairston is a northern VA kid who plays AAU out of DC.

Tyler Thornton is from the area as well.

[JDev]

Duke has gotten some really good players from that area. Off the top of my head, I know currently Nolan, and Tommy Amaker and Johnny Dawkins were from DC. Grant Hill was from South Lakes High, in Reston, VA, the northern VA area. Danny Ferry went to basketball powerhouse DeMatha in Maryland. There are probably others I am not thinking of.

[gofurman]

thanks gw - i love the analysis... Maryland is on my "most-hated" list - fan base etc... KILL THEM, SHOW NO MERCY

[toughbuff1]

DBR got a brief mention in this article in the Baltimore Sun:

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/college/basketball/mens/bal-terpshoop123,0,6067675.story

[greybeard]

Does K go small again with McClure starting for Zoubs? I don't think so.

[pfrduke]

Does K go small again with McClure starting for Zoubs? I don't think so.

I don't think so either. Dave Neal is no Greg Monroe, not just in the obvious ability differences, but in style differences as well. Yes, Neal can shoot an outside jumpshot, but he's not a guy who has the propensity to be dangerous off the bounce or passing the ball. Zoubek should be able to guard him outside just fine.

The Georgetown game was a big mismatch for a guy like Brian, and we were better served going small. This is still a mismatch, but it's one that (I think) favors Duke more than Maryland.

[DukePA]

Need I say more? :) Except, of course: GO DUKE!!!

[weezie]

Who sweats more..Gary or Seth Greenberg? I haven't seen anyone sweat that bad since Patrick Ewing retired.

Ooof, tough choice...gross choice but tough nonetheless.... Hhmmm: Gary in the Shamwow suit.

I wish there was a way to encourage the Crazies to greet Gervais with nothing but pin drop silence. But, I guess they will be their usual welcoming, charming selves.

[miramar]

Message for el niño: Mi casa no es su casa.

[Lulu]

While I detest UNC most of all, Maryland and their fans are the most loathsome. If Duke needs any extra motivation for this seemingly lopsided contest I say we make it our goal to hand them their most embarrassing loss in school history.

[heyman25]

I agree with statement for keeping Gary as head coach. If it keeps Maryland in mediocrity I am very happy about that.

[willowglen]

I don't think Williams puts much effort into recruiting.

But don't underestimate the decline of College Park factor. It no longer really has any college feel. PG County by and large is not pleasant, has high crime, and the school (while good academically) has an overgrown community college look to it in places.

It is noticeably different than in the 70's when my Duke athletic team competed there. Back then it had a suburban, rather than a run-down urban, feel.

I can't think of a harder campus to recruit from in the ACC right now than Maryland.

And it makes a difference.

[mapei]

I wouldn't discount the effect of Georgetown's resurgence on recruiting. I respect gw's opinion, as he is generally much more informed than I re basketball, but just look at the decent-to-very-good players who have gone to Georgetown in the last few years: Jeff Green, Roy Hibbert, DaJuan Summers, Austin Freeman, Chris Wright, Jason Clark. Freeman and Clark were DC-area players of the year, and Wright is the only player ever to be named first-team all-Met three years in a row. If I'm not mistaken, Summers was very highly regarded coming out of Baltimore. Georgetown beat UMCP by almost 30 using these players from MD and DC. Ten years ago some of them would have gone to UMCP and helped.

Anyway, I hope Duke takes them very seriously. Gary always brings his A game when he plays Duke, and way too often Duke hasn't met the challenge.

[moonpie23]

we had better not underestimate them. They ALWAYS find a way to make it a tough game......duke not taking them seriously will be a mainstay of gary's strategy this game....


hit em fast, hard, and don't let off the gas...No stall-ball above 4min...

[dukebballcamper90-91]

Got the wings cooking, coke zero flowing
let's go duke!

[riverside6]

Here's the link to live stats (http://www.scacchoops.com/ViewHDGame.asp?hSchedule=2001) for Duke/Maryland

The starting lineups are up.

[jpfrizzle]

Go DUKE ! ! ! !

[bludvlman]

Bobby Knight just said that Singler has past Handstravel as the best player in college basketball.

[Karl Beem]

Z is awesome!:D

[PSurprise]

Looks like Gary's already starting to sweat.

[RainingThrees]

Zoubs is tearing it up!!!! Scheyer playing good too.

[Edouble]

How could Mike Patrick possibly think that Lance Thomas' shot was a three? It was about 6' inside the line.

[dukebballcamper90-91]

Playing some great Duke Defense.

[DukieInBrasil]

Jordan made an appearance!!! I thought he used up his eligibility by playing in the NBA and winning all those championships. Plus the pro baseball. What? You mean that´s his first name? His last name is Davidson? Oh, never mind....

[Karl Beem]

I wonder if Singler is under the weather?

[trey]

I don't have DVR, but did Len Elmore just say, "Let me make a contraception" while Kyle was shooting free throws?

[DukieInBrasil]

Kyle started the game pretty off, but he´s heating up now!!! Up by 19, YAY!!!

[slower]

I don't have DVR, but did Len Elmore just say, "Let me make a contraception" while Kyle was shooting free throws?

He must be channeling his inner Emmitt Smith.

[SupaDave]

He must be channeling his inner Emmitt Smith.

Or Mike Tyson. :)

Zoub to Lance looked pretty good just a second ago...

[bludvlman]

Anyone else think Gary Williams might get the axe after this season? He is a good coach but he can't recruit worth crap anymore. All the great players from the DC/MD area are going to other schools mainly George Town.

[trey]

Or Mike Tyson. :)

Zoub to Lance looked pretty good just a second ago...

Yeah, Zoubs has my vote for Man of the Half! Lance is playing well too.

Lovin it!

[DukieInBrasil]

3 guys who have played well below their capability at some point this season are playing really well so far: Greg (early), Z and LT (recently). Greg´s dished out the ball pretty well, hasn´t hit his 3s but did can a jumper. Z is rebounding well, blocking shots and scoring buckets against a smaller, yet still ACC, squad and LT even hit a jumper, not quite a 3, well not even close really, but it was outside the paint.
Up by 25 at the half!!!!

[grossbus]

excluding our last possession, not a bad half!

[pfrduke]

When we're playing great defense, it's just so much fun to watch. Absolutely nothing has been easy for Maryland in the first half. Just an outstanding performance. Hopefully the intensity stays strong in half 2.

[RainingThrees]

Great defense good Offense, this is how we should be playing!!! G burying the 3's, Zoubs giving us shot blocking and a threat that Maryland has to respect inside. Nolan has played good except for that last posession and Lance is playing good. Singler is beasting the boards and Scheyer is playing excellent D along with McClure. Now if only Elliot, Miles, and Olek could get some burn.

[MB in MD]

Loved the energy on the boards. Loved Brian's play. If we could make layups we'd be up 40

[SMO]

Loved the energy on the boards. Loved Brian's play. If we could make layups we'd be up 40

You're right, this should be even worse!

[RainingThrees]

How did Mike Patrick say LT made a 3. It looked like a 15 footer!

[SMO]

How did Mike Patrick say LT made a 3. It looked like a 15 footer!

I'm starting to think he really needs his vision checked (not kidding). He sees a lot of strange things these days.

[RainingThrees]

At least he hasn't said staggering or holy cow yet.

[willowglen]

The fact that Duke could totally dominate this team just by playing intense defense is testimony as to how far the talent level at College Park has fallen.

This is not a criticism of Duke; Maryland couldn't get any decent shots in the first half except for Neal's few shots, and of course, there is a reason Duke leaves Neal open. They just don't have the athletes, and the single one they have can be taken out of his game (Vasquez).

Gary Williams stays, however, as long as he likes. The tragedy of Len Bias scandalized the school and hurt the athletic department and school tremendously. Williams brought them back from the grave, and has near Joe Paterno like status. Whether this is good for their program is irrelevant.

[RainingThrees]

I agree Maryland just doesn't have the raw talent. At some point it doesn't matter how hard you work you need big time recruits.

[allenmurray]

If this is Vasqeez' house duke just put a forecolsure sign in front.

- Len Elmore

[Karl Beem]

G is Smokin' hot!:D

[Karl Beem]

Women and children first!

[trey]

That was the play of the season!

[MB in MD]

Loved the energy on the boards. Loved Brian's play. If we could make layups we'd be up 40

and now we are

[OldSchool]

Oh Happy Day!!

[bludvlman]

Poor it on, I hate Maryland almost as much as UNC b/c their fans are classless trash. Remember what they did to Boozer's mom and things they said about JJ's family.

Run it up boys.

[trey]

Poor it on, I hate Maryland almost as much as UNC b/c their fans are classless trash. Remember what they did to Boozer's mom and things they said about JJ's family.

Run it up boys.

Amen! Now that the starters are out, they might make it to 40.

[DownEastDevil]

Elmore sure hates to admit that Duke is pretty darn good. I guess it is hard set thru the whooping his Maryland team is taking.

[devildownunder]

According to ESPN, with the score 71-29, we have 20 assists on 20 field goals.

Now that's outstanding TEAM basketball!

[devildownunder]

Let's not kid ourselves. Duke SHOULD win this by 20. But every time Md. plays us they play us strong. It is THE GAME for Md. Their game against Duke is the ONLY game they care about. They could lose 25 games in a season and never go to the NCAAs again, but will count it a successful season if they beat Duke once. Their standard, every-game chant is "(f-word) Duke." They use it every game and the entire game and are unbelievably proud of that fact.

They will come to play. Gary will have them primed with a white-hot hatred of Duke and all things Duke. If they beat us they will burn down half of College Park and turn over cars and assault police. If they lose they will burn down half of College Park and turn over cars and assault police.

They are the most ridiculous program with the stupidest fans and in all of Div. I basketball. But they will give us a game for sure, and they may very well win. You think NC State gave us a scare? You ain't seen nothing yet.

Mark my words.


Well, you can't get 'em all right.

Sorry, couldn't resist.

[devildownunder]

Duke's up 40 as garbage time starts with 13+ to play AND Abby Waner is on the broadcast team.

I am one happy camper. :)

[devildownunder]

I've stuck up for Len Elmore plenty but he really needs to get over Duke. For him to suggest that the officials somehow jobbed Maryland in the first half of this game is offensive and a serious disservice to Duke. I mean it's actually harming us, at this point. Duke totally dominated that first half, where exactly where those Terps free throws supposed to come from.

[willowglen]

devildownunder - re assists - it is easy to overlook how well coached Duke happens to be.

And Maryland has played much better at times this year, and could I think play Duke to a 10-12 point game (a loss).

The Terps have quit - not saying this in a mean way or to imply that they are truly lazy - they just have mentally quit and lost the desire to focus - a killer at this level of Div. 1 competition.

[trey]

Well, you can't get 'em all right.

Sorry, couldn't resist.

They still might burn down half of College Park and turn over cars and assault police. ;)

[MB in MD]

According to ESPN, with the score 71-29, we have 20 assists on 20 field goals.

Now that's outstanding TEAM basketball!

That's almost impossible to believe, but it is a great sign; it really is what has been missing lately. Hope we can build on this later this week

[Stray Gator]

I think it's hilarious how Elmore keeps whining about the officiating, complaining that physical contact on the Maryland players isn't being whistled and that every shot Duke blocks should be a goal-tending call. Once a Terp, always a Terp.

[trey]

Miles has missed a bunch of point-blank shots today. At least he's getting some PT.

[trey]

His D has been good though!

[MChambers]

That's almost impossible to believe, but it is a great sign; it really is what has been missing lately. Hope we can build on this later this week

23 assists on 30 fgs.

[davekay1971]

If it weren't for the officials, Maryland would be winning this game. The only reason we've doubled them up is the refs.

Elmore...what a putz. This is a butt-kicking...