Maryland's Last Non-Conference Game: What Needs to be Done

Tomorrow Maryland will wrap up its non-conference schedule with their game against the Morgan State Bears, which should be an easy victory. Maryland has done what they needed to do through this play, going 11-2 including winning all nine games at home and taking away what should be helpful wins in March against Michigan State and Michigan. But it has been a rough ride in certain games, including slow starts and very rough frontcourt play. Before the ACC stretch begins this weekend against Georgia Tech, here's what Maryland needs to work on.

--Find the frontcourt options.
Maryland clearly has issues down low, and it is not clear how this will be solved. The Terps leading rebounder is Greivis Vasquez. The two main forwards for Maryland are not the kind Maryland needs: Landon Milbourne, a 6'7'' athletic forward who is a good shooter, and Dave Neal, a 6'7'' banger that can shoot from anywhere. The problem is neither is good at snagging

rebounds and pushing in the paint. Dino Gregory seems to be developing there, but he is never seeing much time on the court, so Gary must feel he is not ready to be that type of player yet. Braxton Dupree, the player Maryland was hoping to be the big man, is barely even on the court since the Old Spice Classic. Jerome Burney is still out with a stress fracture but even when he was healthy he was not playing. This is not a problem that will solve itself, the ACC is full of solid frontcourt players. Maryland will need Neal and Gregory to step up their game so they can compete in the paint.

--Adrian Bowie and Sean Mosley need to develop their three-point shot.
After the Charlotte game, Gary emphasized how much he liked Mosley's play particularly since Maryland has limited three-point threats. Only Eric Hayes and Greivis Vasquez have taken more than 30 three-point shots this year. Without a solid frontcourt, Maryland needs to adapt to these circumstances, including having more threats from the perimeter. This would spread out the defense more if they respected other shooters. This would fall on Bowie and Mosley, both who see a lot of time on the court. If either of them can become a three-point shooting threat, that would ease a lot of pressure on the frontcourt and Vasquez.

--Work on playing a 40-minute game.
In a number of non-conference games, most notably Elon, Charlotte, and Vermont, Maryland's slow starts got them in real trouble. The Terps have done well recovering in the seocnd half and traditionally do better in the final 20 minutes. With Maryland's system, they will need to shoot consistently, and they won't be able to come back if down early. They will need to play games close or put their opponent away quickly.

--The half-court offense needs work.
Maryland has clearly established that they like fast breaks and points on turnovers, however they are stuggling when it comes to regular-style play. The ACC will not be committing as many turnovers or as many bad passes. Maryland needs to be able to slow down and be calm on possessions.

(Photo credits: Baltimore Sun)

Lessons of the Old Spice Classic

The Old Spice Classic started with hope and ended with disappointment for Maryland. What was expected to be a first round loss to Michigan State then two contests on ESPNU turned into a huge upset of the Spartans then two losses to ranked teams Gonzaga and Georgetown. Now that Maryland is 4-2, and the rest of the non-conference schedule does not have much to gain from with the exception of Michigan and American, they need to learn lessons from the Classic. The ACC schedule starts in five weeks, and Maryland needs to be ready.

Big men dominate Maryland. Not that we did not expect this, but Maryland undersized frontcourt got dominated by Gonzaga's Josh Heytvelt, Austin Daye, and Georgetown's Greg Monroe, all who stand at 6'11''. Normally Gary has at least two players that can play down low well enough the spread the floor, but Maryland does not have those type players right now. Braxton Dupree is the only player that has the physical nature to be able to play with them, but he is still getting used to starting. He is having trouble receiving the ball on Vasquez's passes and is not being physical enough in the paint. The ACC may be a guard-heavy conference, but a few teams do have strong big men, and Maryland needs to develop the frontcourt game more.

Hello Dave Neal! Dave Neal plays his guts out during the Classic. He got Player of the Game against Michigan State and was always hustling out on the court. For the first time in his four years here, he is playing like he is a forward that can shoot for three. Physically, he is not a great player, but he is showing good senior leadership on the court. With the frontcourt problems, don't be surprised if Neal sees 20 minutes a game come down the stretch if he continues play like this.

When Maryland shoots well, they can play with anyone. Against Michigan State, Maryland was 9-19 from downtown, six of those shots missed from Greivis Vasquez. Adrian Bowie and Dave Neal were hitting those shots from beyond the arc. Combined for the other two games, the Terps shot 4-31 on three-point shots. Vasquez, Eric Hayes. Bowie, and Jin-Soo Kim are considered the main threats from three-point range this season, but all will need to step up. With the problems in the front court, the shooting needs to be better to keep Maryland in contention. Before the season, Gary said that shooting has never been a problem in his time with Maryland. That may be true, but they don't have defense to fall back on if they have a bad day. But, the Michigan State proved that they can play with anyone if they are on their game.

The starting five still are not set in stone. Cliff Tucker did not start against Georgetown, as he had a bad Classic. Landon Milbourne and Dupree were not playing great either. Bowie shot very well, and Neal was a big spark off the bench. Sean Mosley got the start against the Hoyas, but he did not play like anything special. The starting lineup could easily shake up during the year in more inconsistent play is seen. Bowie could start if Maryland had another backup point guard, but with Vasquez and Hayes starting, he may have to stay a reserve for now. It does not look like Dupree will be replaced, as Dino Gregory and Jerome Burney are not playing much. Neal can not replace Dupree; that would be giving up any reasonable down low play.

Maryland made a huge mistake letting Bobby Maze go. Maze is the starting point guard for Tennessee after Maryland pulled their scholarship offer to him to get Tyree Evans, which as we all know ended in Evans not coming here after his criminal past came up. If a Maryland fan saw Maze play for Bruce Pearl's Volunteers this weekend, it would hurt. He is the kind of point guard the Terps would love, a primary passing guard that does not shoot often and shows a lot of energy and passion on the court. Obviously he would not have solved many of Maryland's problems, but they could have used a player like him. Maze wanted to come here, did not have a major problem in his past off the court, and Maryland did not take him over Evans.

Maryland must win the rest of their non-conference schedule. As previously mentioned, only Michigan and American provide any competition to Maryland's remaining non-conference opponents. Though the Classic ended with two losses, that Michigan State win was huge, and hopefully one that will mean something in March. The Terps can not afford a defeat like last year's loss to Ohio. These games are all at home except the BB&T Classic against George Washington. It will be hard for them to win eight straight games, especially after nearly losing to Vermont, but it will give them a lot of leeway for the ACC stretch.

Maryland's next game is the ACC/Big Ten Challenge matchup against Michigan on Wednesday at 7:30.

(Photo credit: Baltimore Sun)

Terps Basketball: 1st Two Games

Maryland is off to a 2-0 start in the season, with victories over Bucknell and Youngstown State. They were not pretty wins, but the Terps got the job done. We all knew that with the departure of James Gist and Bambale Osby that would leave a very young and inexperienced frontcourt, and that Maryland would have to adjust to that.

When asked about whether or not he was worried about his backcourt doing all the scoring with a problematic frontcourt, Gary Williams responded by saying "There's a team in Durham that gets away with that." Gary is right in that this type of team can work, but with the 3-point line moving back a foot this season, it only makes things more difficult.

Some thoughts on the first two games:
--It is possible that Maryland will be going with four-guard sets. Normally Gary likes going with either a 2-3 or a 3-2, but with the problems in the frontcourt, a four-guard set seems to be the best way for Maryland to play. I can not imagine a starting lineup with four guards, but do not be surprised if four-guard sets are used in the middle of halves.

--It is not clear who will be the Terps main player down low. Braxton Dupree is in the current starting lineup. Though he looks improved from last year, he still is having major issues against people he should be dominating, like players his size. Youngstown State was all over him in the first half, and it wasn't until the second half he started getting some big blocks. Dino Gregory and Jerome Burney have seen a little time, but none of the three look very impressive. They are all sophomores, and the competition seems wide open.

--Only two players seem to be up or above expectations right now. Greivis Vasquez had a fantastic game against Youngstown St, having the game highs for points with 28 and rebounds with eight. He is playing his normal aggressive style plus shooting a lot, and with the current play of the team, expect more of the same. The other is Cliff Tucker. Tucker, a starter but still competing for time, is also playing heads up on the court and showing great speed. This all is not to say only two players are playing well. Eric Hayes, Jin-Soo Kim, and Landon Milbourne are playing fine. But this is against teams Maryland should dominate; what will happen against the ACC?

--You know things are problematic when Dave Neal is seeing nearly 20 minutes a game. Enough said.

Maryland's next game is against Vermont, then the Old Spice Classic awaits. Let's hope the Terps are ready for the tournament.

(Photo credit: Baltimore Sun)