Maryland Basketball: Ugly Is In The Eye Of The Beholder

Maryland Terrapins (10-6, 0-1 ACC) at
Virginia Tech Hokies (9-6, 0-1 ACC)
Cassell Coliseum - Blacksburg, VA

The last time we checked in with Maryland was right after their unsightly, but not season-killing, loss to VCU and right before their bad, but not season-killing, loss to Boston College. Since that time, Maryland has lost twice more. Once was to underrated Ohio. While it was a game Maryland should never have lost, the Bobcats will probably be one of the top two teams in the MAC this season and should earn themselves an NCAA bid by winning their conference. So in hindsight, it was a slightly embarrassing loss, but not one that’s going to be remembered once the season ends.

Then there was the loss to American. What can you possibly say about this game? It was awful. I don’t care how bad Maryland is, there is no way the Terps should lose at home to American University. There is no way Maryland should be dominated on the boards by a team with an average height of 6’4”. There is no way that should ever, ever happen. That loss falls on Gary Williams. That loss falls on the assistant coaches. That loss falls on the players. That loss falls on the entire program. For the past four seasons, this program has had its fair share of bad moments and bad losses. But never to American, and never a loss to a team at the small conference level.

Quick…what do Bowling Green, Morgan State, Brown, Hampton and Robert Morris all have in common? They’ve all beaten teams that have beaten Maryland. So not only do the Terps have to deal with losing to teams like Ohio and American, they have to deal with the losses those teams suffer as well because of the RPI. Now you begin to see what kind of uphill climb Maryland faces the rest of the way.

Now before you get all excited, thinking that I’m calling for Williams’ head, I’m not. As far as I’m concerned, Williams can stay as long as he wants. He brought this program back from the abyss, won a National Championship, and put Maryland athletics as a whole on the map. Just like Joe Gibbs, I’ve defended Williams’ job security from day one. That doesn’t mean I can’t blame him or partially blame him for a loss. The fact that Williams has allowed Maryland to fall far enough for a loss to American to occur, says he’s not taking care of the program the way he once did. On the practice court and on gameday, I think is passion is the same as always. But on the recruiting trail, it has certainly and undeniably changed.

The loss to American was clearly not all his fault. In fact, it was mostly on the players. For the past two months, we’ve seen a complete breakdown of Maryland basketball. There have been too many possessions ending with ridiculous passes that result in turnovers. There have been too many possessions where no one moves without the ball (a death knell for even the best offenses). The team defense is where it needs to be. The offensive end of the court is where Maryland has completely fallen off the wagon.

Greivis Vasquez spends too much time trash-talking and posing for the camera. Shut up and play. You want to play in the NBA? Then stop losing to teams like Ohio and American. Why would any NBA team draft a player who can’t play well against American to help them beat the Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns of the world? He has yet to put together a complete game all season. James Gist suddenly has Travis Garrison Disease and refuses to consistently play inside. At one point a couple of weeks ago, he was averaging three free throws a game. That’s insanely low for one of the best power forwards in the ACC. The only reason Gist can’t dominate inside is if he takes himself out of the paint. Other than Tyler Hansbrough, what player in the ACC can keep up with him? There’s no one. But not if he keeps wandering 12 or more feet away from the basket. Landon Milbourne has been a bust. Bamble Osby picks up way too many stupid fouls. The freshmen have all shown flashes of brilliance, undermined by stretches ranging from inconsistency to incompetence. Other than Eric Hayes, there isn’t one player I have confidence in to play a complete 40 minutes. And he’s out for at least two more games.

Let’s look at this long term. If Maryland wants to get into the real tournament, they’ll probably need to go 11-5 in conference play (11-4 from here on out). Even though there are some tough games on the schedule, there are actually a few teams in the ACC that are far worse than the Terps. 11-5 may be a stretch, but take a look at the rest of the conference. With two games in a row against Virginia Tech and Wake Forest, there’s still plenty of time for this team to get on a roll. And recently, the offense does seem to be getting on track. Gist is starting to float inside a little bit more. Osby minutes have been cut down, but the quality of minutes is improving. Cliff Tucker and Adrian Bowie are starting to earn their playing time. The Maryland defense has continued to play well. If Gist continues to stay inside, this offense can work.

This past summer, Virginia Tech lost Zabian Dowdell and Jamon Gordon, among others, to graduation. All that’s left in Blacksburg is Deron Washington, A.D (which stands for “does nothing but shoot threes All Day”) Vassallo and freshman Jeff Allen. The Hokies only average 67 points a game and they’ve done so against average competition. Like Maryland a month ago, Virginia Tech has a negative assist-to-turnover ration. Unlike Maryland, they haven’t fixed that problem yet. They’ve lost to decent mid-majors like Butler and Gonzaga, but have also lost to Penn State, Old Dominion and Richmond. They’ve also won very close games to St. John’s and awful Elon. Their premier wins against George Washington and mid-major Hofstra are not good at all since neither of those teams is going to sniff the tournament and would both be lucky to get finish .500. Tech has also played only twice in the past 15 days, so there is good risk of rust.

I can’t believe I’m doing this, but I’m taking Maryland on the road, despite the Terps having shown absolutely nothing against a good team all season. The only reason I’m doing this is that the Hokies have shown less, against lesser teams. Maryland eeks out a road win and hopefully gets back on track before their season ends in mid-January.

Maryland 68
Virginia Tech 65