Terps ACC Run Ends: Duke Defeats Maryland

Maryland's run in the tournament is over with their loss to Duke in the semifinals 67-61 on Saturday, the third time this season they fell to the Blue Devils. The Terps end their tournament with two wins and a loss, including a win over top-10 Wake Forest.

The Terps were close throughout, but fatigue caught up to them in the end. Maryland did not have much of an answer for Kyle Singler on the boards, who despites shooting 3-12 had a double double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Jon Scheyer had the other big night with 22 points, going 4-10 from beyond the arc. In the end, Duke went to the free throw line more and converted those shots.

Eric Hayes had a monster night, hitting numerous shots towards the end of the game and keeping Maryland close, finishing with 20 points; 15 came in the second half. Greivis Vasquez ended with 14 points and six rebounds.

Now the question becomes, will the Terps make the NCAA Tournament? They did most of what was necessary, a convincing win over Wake Forest and getting to 20 wins, finishing 20-13, and not ending with a bad loss. They gained a lot of attention with that Wake win to add to their Michigan State and North Carolina wins. Some say the Terps are a lock, some are not sure. Regardless, we will not know for sure until the selection show. But Gary Williams and the Terps did what they could do to get themselves back on the map.

Maryland Keeping Its Tournament Hopes Alive

Who needs the regular season? This is the question that some basketball fans have been thinking while watching the madness start early this year in the conference tournaments. The Maryland Terrapins have certainly been a part of that, stunning the ACC with their convincing win over Wake Forest yesterday evening in which Greivis Vazquez nearly had a triple double and the Terps out-rebounded the taller and more athletic Demon Deacons.

It's very easy to say that this win was just a product of Greivis having another transcendent game, but it reminded me of the UNC game in that the rest of the team played exceptionally sound and smart basketball. They out-toughed Wake Forest from the opening tip and, unlike their previous matchup, forced Wake Forest into a litany of fouls. Maryland got to the free throw line, which has been their strength all season, and capitalized on Wake Forest's errors. Two names that I would like to throw out there for players who deserve commendation: Sean Mosley for finally stepping up offensively and playing a complete game, and Dino Gregory for his monumental improvement in play over the past few games. Dino Gregory has been a crucial part of both of Maryland's wins thus far in the ACC tournament, particularly against NCState where he grabbed a career high eight rebounds.

Now Maryland comes up against the hated Duke Blue Devils, with a scheduled tip off of 3:30 pm for a chance to go to the ACC tournament. Maryland possibly got themselves in with the win over Wake, but given the shrinking state of the bubble, I have serious doubts as to whether or not Maryland will be able to sneak in without a win today. Luckily for Maryland they have already played Duke twice, and they already have a blueprint for how to win. That blueprint being, play the same game they did against Wake except do not sag so much on defense. Maryland needs to get to the foul line, and play hard pressure defense. The Terps will need to play a perfect game to take down the Blue Devils, but they've shown that they're more than capable of doing that on any given day.

(Photo Credit: Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

Terrapins Hoping for Revenge Tonight Against the Blue Devils

The stage is set for one of the biggest Maryland-Duke matchups in recent history tonight at the Comcast Center. The Terps currently stand at 6-6 in the ACC, needing at least two victories (probably three) in their next four games to have a legitimate shot at the NCAA Tournament heading into the ACC Tournament. A win against the Blue Devils would go a very long way to achieving this end, and enabling the selection committee to overlook the 41-point destruction of the Terps at the hands of these same Blue Devils earlier this season at Cameron.

Regardless of the standings, the Maryland-Duke game was always going to be a focal point for the Terps season, but the North Carolina win has maginfied its significance and infused a much needed jolt of energy into the fan base. Prior to the UNC game, the students at Maryland had been sorely lacking in enthusiasm and turnout through the season. With the win against the Tar Heels, the campus has been rife with passion for this upcoming matchup and it will most definitely be a major player in tonight's game. But the real question is, can the Terps pull this upset? Yes, but a few things will have to happen...

1. The crowd has to bother Duke's shooters. Duke is an outstanding jump shooting team that relies on superior guard play to win. If the crowd can get into the heads of those shooters like Paulus and Singler, their offense could get out of rhythm and help Maryland's defense. If Duke's shooters are made comfortable then they can rout Maryland straight out of the gym -- keept them off balance, Maryland could pull the upset.

2. Maryland has to win the three-point game. Maryland is not going to win a game in the paint, this has been very well documented, so if the Terrapins are going to take a big one they're going to have to rely on some big time performances behind the arc. Like in their win against North Carolina, the Terps are going to need efficient performances from Eric Hayes, Cliff Tucker, and Greivis Vazquez shooting from deep. If Duke is then forced to spread their defense, more lanes will open up for easy twos, but it all starts with making the three with some consistency for Maryland.

3. Maryland must keep the ball away from Brian Zoubek. For most teams facing Duke, Brian Zoubek is pretty far down the list of players to worry about, but his size can be absolutely devastating to Maryland down low. We have already seen Zoubek dominate Maryland in the paint, as the Terps have noone to counter him in the frontcourt. Therefore it will be imperative that Maryland not only deny the entry passes to Zoubek, but hopefully get him in early foul trouble by driving right at him with a quicker guard like Adrian Bowie.

4. Maryland has to minimize the turnovers. This always sounds cliche, but against a team like the Blue Devils it is absolutely essential that the Terrapins not play sloppy with the ball. Duke is a fast, guard-oriented team, who would like nothing more than to run up and down the court. Maryland cannot afford to waste possessions and have them turn into easy Duke baskets. It looks like Greivis Vazquez. will be playing point today, based on last week's success, so a large part of this will fall on him. But quite honestly, every Maryland fan already knows that a good part of this game is riding on Greivis' play.

Those are four points that leap out to me from a preliminary standpoint. Either way this will be a tough and emotional game, particularly for the Terps, so the Blue Devils should be ready for a fistfight regardless of what the final score turns out to be. One thing I would like to say before I close this up is this: the most underrated part of this Terrapin team is their toughness. I have never seen a team at Maryland play this scrappy, this hard, on almost every play as this year's team. This group has a chip on their shoulder and it shows in their passion. As a fan, you can't always rely on the Terps to shoot well or play smart, but you can rely on this team to play with every ounce they have.

(Photo Credit: Monica Lopossay/Baltimore Sun)

Maryland Basketball Still Feeling the Heat After Duke Loss

After Maryland's 41-point loss against Duke, the voices of calling for Gary Williams's firing got louder and louder, and even two days after the defeat, the game is still resonating among Terp fans.

The question I have is why? No one expected Maryland to win this game. Duke was the #2 team in the nation on their home court with better shooters plus the big men to compete. They are now #1 in the country. Looking objectively at this game, did anyone believe Maryland could handle 7' Brian Zoubek or future NBAer Kyle Singler? Did they think Maryland could keep up with the speed despite a relatively young team? Coming into this season, Maryland's flaws were very clear, they don't have sufficient big men and likely this would be a down year. If a couple points go the other way, Maryland could be sitting at 16-3 instead of 13-6, and no one in their right mind would be talking if Maryland was 13 games over .500.

There is no question this loss was terrible. There is no question that Maryland has issues that need to be addressed if they wish to contend for the NCAA Tournament. But just because of one lop-sided game, everyone should jump ship? Before the season it was said that Maryland would have a hard time competing, but once again, now that it has happened, many are getting upset.

For those wanting Gary Williams fired, it isn't happening this year. Maryland like many schools has big financial issues, and the basketball program is the only sport making money for the athletic program. Fire Gary and a lot of sponsors go away. But more to the point, this season is not over. It looks grimm, but it isn't like a 10-point loss to Duke would have changed anyone's thoughts.

(Photo credit: AP)

Maryland Gets Destroyed by the Blue Devils 85-44

There is a reason why Maryland's press release is only four lines long. Maybe it will get longer, but probably not. The fact is there is nothing good to take out of this loss. Nothing. It doesn't matter that Landon Milbourne had 19 points, it doesn't matter that the Maryland defense played all right for 14 minutes. The fact is they lost by 41, the worst loss ever by Maryland to Duke. Duke is a far better team then Maryland that will take the #1 ranking, but you couldn't help but think the Terps just didn't show up in Cameron Indoor Stadium today, a place they call their "home away from home." This is a game they will want to quickly forget.

All year Maryland has been trying to play a game like Duke normally does. A guard-heavy offense that relies on shooting well. Problem is they don't shoot well. They don't have enough accurate three-point shooters or people that can grab the rebounds when they do have problems. Maryland normally runs a mixed offense of forwards and guards, and they are just not used to this. Though they prefer players that are bangers in the paint, even in earlier years with athletic forwards they have found success. But this year, they have neither.

The stats speak for themselves. Outscored 85-44, outrebounded 56-38, outstolen 11-5, outblocked 12-6. None of the Duke starters played more than 25 minutes; they didn't need to. Greivis Vasquez, who says he loves to play at Cameron and feeds off the crowd, shot 2-10 and got four points. Maryland shot 2-12 beyond the arc. It is not to take anything away from Duke, as they are a great team, but this is a rivalry, and rivalry games should be closer than this.

With all of this, Maryland needs to regroup and put this loss behind them. This schedule is not getting any easier, and if they want to go .500 in the ACC, they need to get their act together. They still have North Carolina twice, Duke again, plus Wake Forest and Clemson, all which will be losses if they put performances like today's, count all of those as losses. It doesn't matter if they are close losses, a loss is a loss to the NCAA. There is still time, but they have to be ready.

(Photo credit: Baltimore Sun)

Terps Head to Durham

To Maryland fans, the two Duke games are the bigger games of the year. Maryland-Duke may not be a full-blown rivalry, but these two do not like each other at all. The first installment of the 08-09 season commences this afternoon as the Terps will face the Blue Devils in Cameron Indoor Stadium at noon ET.

#2 Duke is prime to take over the #1 ranking for next week if they defeat Maryland, as current #1 Wake Forest got upset at home to Virginia Tech earlier in the week. They hold a 4-0 record in the conference with a 17-1 record overall, their lone loss coming against Michigan back in Ann Arbor on December 6th.

At the frontcourt, Kyle Singler is is a 6'8'' forward that plays hard down low, having a strong sophomore season, averaging 16.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. Their other big man is junior Brian Zoubek, a 7'1'' pure rebounding and defensive center. He averages 4.7 boards a game, but only averages around 14 minutes a game. Maryland needs Dave Neal and Dino Gregory to step up today. The Terps saw how a seven foot player does against Maryland on the board when they played Virginia, 7' freshman center Assane Sane had seven boards in just 10 minutes; the Terps were very fortunate he got into foul trouble.

Duke has normally been all about their backcourt in recent years, and this season has a strong one. While junior Gerald Henderson isn't the cleanest of players, he averaging 14.4 a game, and Jon Scheyer is getting 13.3. The Blue Devils love to own the perimeter and are a big time shooting team.

One key aspect against Duke especially down in Durham has been Greivis Vasquez. He thrives off the hatred from the crowd and has scored more than 20 points each time he's been down there. But the Terps need more than just him to step up. Maryland still is not looking good all-around, barely defeating Virginia and Georgia Tech at home and in turn barely losing to their two Florida opponents. Adrian Bowie and Dino Gregory have been decent of late, and will need to continue their success. Duke is heavily favored in this contest, but Maryland needs to play well.