Maryland Basketball: And BC Makes Twelve

#6/6 Boston College Eagles (6-1, 0-0) at
#21/17 Maryland Terrapins (6-2, 0-0)
Comcast Center – College Park, MD

Eight games into the new season, the Maryland Terrapins find themselves in the exact same predicament they did last year. Despite a 6-2 record, the Terps have yet to beat a decent opponent. Their offense goes stagnant for possessions at a time. They have no established go-to scorer in the clutch. The defense can dominate a game for 30-35 minutes, but the time that they let their guard down is the time that opponents use to make their game-altering run. No one on the team can constantly hit three-pointers. No one on the team goes after loose balls. Maryland still has no clue how to beat a zone, and no clue how to run a zone on the other end. And despite the self-proclaimed “New Coach Williams”, the team still isn’t responding to the verbal abuse that is being thrown at them by Gary.

And despite all that went wrong last year, there are even more problems so far this season. Along with not being able to score against a zone defense, Maryland can no longer break pressure defenses either. They had 25 turnovers against GW’s press. That's incredible and pathetic at the same time. And it wasn’t like the Colonials press was all that great. Watching on TV, you could see plenty of holes and open passing lanes for Maryland to break pressure and get easy baskets. And they failed. So Maryland can’t beat a zone, can’t beat pressure defenses…what’s left? The only thing Maryland can consistently beat is non-pressure, man-to-man defenses. And how many teams in the ACC are going to be nice enough to play that against the Terps? The answer is zero.

It is worth mentioning again, that Nik Caner-Medley is one of the worst starting players in the ACC. How he manages to keep his role is beyond me. Strawberry is clearly showing signs of never being able to handle the point guard role. Don’t get me wrong, I love D.J., he plays with heart. But he is not going to materialize at point guard. It’s not going to happen. What’s worse is that Sterling Ledbetter is even shoddier at point. Ledbetter cannot run an offense in the ACC. He would have problems running an offense at most D-1 schools. He is horrendous. He can’t shoot. He can’t pass. He can’t drive to the hoop. And he barely plays defense. What does he do that allows him to see any minutes of playing time?

Is it all bad news? Basically. There are a few positives. Mike Jones can still light up the opposition if he feels like it (there are many times when he doesn’t show up). Chris McCray is slowly starting to find his stroke. Gist, Ibekwe and Garrison all show signs of improvement from last year on the offensive side of the ball. And, in maybe the best sign for Maryland, the team is hitting free throws. No one who has taken more than 10 free throws is hitting below 62%.

This is the Terps team we find as they get set to take on Boston College in the first ACC game for both teams. For Boston College, it is their first ACC game altogether. The conference expansion finally came to a close this year as BC became the 25th and final team to enter the conference. Seriously, is there any other school that John Swofford and company want to pull in? Let’s make another push for Notre Dame. West Virginia is nearby, why don’t we invite them? I hear James Madison has a pretty good D-1AA football team. We got to make conference football even better than it is now, so if we add JMU, we would be the only conference boasting champions in two different levels of NCAA football. Or how about USC? I’m not talking about South Carolina (Although, that wouldn’t have been a bad choice, seeing how South Carolina was a former ACC member, has had constant fights with the front offices of the SEC, and are a natural rival to Clemson. But that would have made too much sense.). I’m talking Southern Cal baby. How ‘bout that for football? I know they may not be located on the Atlantic Coast, but if Saint Louis University can move to a conference called the Atlantic-10, and the Big 10 can have eleven members, then why can’t the Trojans join the ACC? (Oh, the sarcasm is dripping today)

There are two positives to BC’s entry and expansion as a whole. First, Maryland is no longer the northern most university. Remember a few years ago, when Gary was upset about the officiating against one of North Carolina’s four schools, he compared Maryland to Alaska in terms of how the other ACC universities looked at UMD. Well, if Maryland is Alaska, I guess that makes Boston College the new Greenland. Second, the fact that there are 12 schools finally goes a long way to breaking up the gulag that was run by the North Carolina schools. Before 1990, the state of North Carolina controlled half of the conference. Now they are down to a 33% share of power. As a result, we are going to see more decisions made that are better for the entire conference, not just the teams in The Triangle. For example, the ACC tournament will now be played on a rotating basis up and down the Atlantic Seaboard, instead of in Greensboro or Charlotte every year. That is good for the conference (although it didn’t help Maryland much last year…did it)

The ramifications of expansion are going to come barreling through the Comcast Center tonight, as the Eagles are much better then anyone expected them to be two or three years ago when this ridiculous expansion business started. In fact, some (mainly me) have said that BC is the best team in the conference this season. The one-two punch of Craig Smith and Jared Dudley are going to roll over a lot of teams this season. Dudley is playing better than the All-American Smith so far. J-Dud averages almost 19 a game along with 8 boards. Smith is obviously no slouch, as he has 15.4 points and 8 rebounds a game himself. Both are dangerous near the hoop, and both can drive from the perimeter. They both have quick hands defensively that result in steals and blocked shots. And their leadership skills are through the roof. But unlike the so-called “#1” team in the nation, the Eagles are far from a two trick pony.

The reason I think the Eagles are the best team in the ACC is their point guard. Louis Hinnant is far from the best player that BC puts on the court, but he is the best and most experienced point guard in the conference. The senior doesn’t try to upstage Smith-Dudley. He gets those two the ball, and then gets out of the way. He has five assists a game, a number that would be better if the Eagles were a better shooting team. Watching him reminds me a lot of Steve Blake. A great passer, a decent defender, and a guy that when it was absolutely necessary, could hit a shot or two. Like Smith-Dudley, Hinnant is a great leader, and the Terps are going to see what they are so sorely missing at point guard tonight when Hinnant steps on the court.

Sean Marshall and Tyrese Rice compliment Hinnant very nicely in the back court. Marshall averages almost 15 a game; Rice almost 12. Rice passes well, and Marshall helps Smith-Dudley on the glass. John Oates is the only big man worth noting. He is 6-10 and has good footwork inside. But he is also a dangerous outside shooter if left open. The main man off the bench is freshman Marquez Haynes. A typical freshman, Haynes shows flashes of brilliance capped off by rookie mistakes. But he can be a play-maker if left unchecked.

If you want more names, you aren’t going to get them. Al Skinner only plays seven guys unless the game is a blowout. Gary noticed that and even mentioned it a couple of times this week…an indication to me that he is going to try and push the tempo whenever he can. And like Maryland, BC is unproven. They have only had two tough games so far. A neutral court win against Oklahoma State (who looked pretty good today against Gonzaga) and a seven-point loss to Michigan State a few days ago is all the Eagles have to look at. Their other five wins came against Dartmouth, Shawnee State, Buffalo, Drake and Sacred Heart. Not exactly murderer’s row.

Also like Maryland, the Eagles have problems holding on to the ball and forcing turnovers on the other end. This may be because they play down to the level of their competition (which I called “pulling a Maryland”) and have coasted through seven games so far. And other than Marshall, they lack a proven three-point shooter. Dudley shoots from behind the arc once in a blue moon, and Smith can’t make the shots he takes.

So the Eagles are not all that different from the Terps. The turnover ratio is not good, they have problems handling pressure defenses, and they can't shoot the three well. The major difference between the two? The combination of Smith and Dudley dwarf anything the Terps can throw at BC. If the Eagles need a basket, they have two proven and accomplished scorers. Maryland does not. The Eagles can prevent lopsided runs from happening. Maryland can not. The Eagles also have a capable point guard. The Terps only advantage lies in the depth of the bench. But when the starting five isn’t playing all that great, that doesn’t bode well for Maryland.

Don’t look for Maryland to turn the ball over more than 15 times in this one. I’m sure Gary and the boys have been working on breaking pressure and handling the rock for the past five days. Also, expect Maryland to have a decent shooting day from behind the line, as their backcourt has both a height and speed advantage over BC’s. In order for Maryland to win, the key stat that they are going to have to control (other than points obviously) is rebounds. The Terps cannot allow Smith, Dudley and Oates to get second and third chances inside. They allow that, and this game won’t be close. We cannot have a repeat of the Minnesota game. Even if they dominate the glass, and push the tempo, the Terps are going to have a hard time keeping pace with the machine-like Boston College offense.

The final factor is the crowd. I keep hearing about this “home court advantage” that Maryland is going to rudely welcome Boston College to the ACC with. What advantage? The students are quiet when they show up (if they show up) and most of the rich alumni don’t even pay attention to the game (neither do the students for that matter). If this was a few years ago, there should be a 10-point home court advantage for Maryland. Even now, there should be a 5-6 point advantage for the Terps. Unfortunately, most of the students won’t care unless BC comes out wearing blue and white uniforms that read “Duke” on the front. So no advantage in the seats, or on the court for Maryland in this one.

Boston College 79
Maryland 68