Maryland Basketball: Sunshine State Of Mind

Maryland Terrapins (12-4, 1-1 ACC) at
Florida State Seminoles (14-3, 1-1 ACC)
Donald L. Tucker Center - Tallahassee, FL

I have to keep this entry short. Not because I don’t have the time. But if I have to talk about Maryland a whole lot I may through my laptop through my window. So it’s best if we keep it short.

This question was posed to me yesterday: was I more shocked that Maryland blew a 17-point second half lead or was I more surprised that Maryland played well enough to possess a 17-point second half lead? Honestly, I was more surprised at the latter. I expected Maryland to lose. I expected them to get crushed. Then, when they had the lead, and Miami hit two threes in a minute to cut the lead to 11, I texted several friends and told them Maryland was going to lose this game. The fact they blew the lead doesn’t surprise me at all. We see this at least 2 to 3 times a season. The loss to Clemson last year still resonates. It was only a week ago when they blew a 14-point lead to Morgan State. So to see Maryland shit away a large second half lead isn’t a shock anymore. It’s almost expected.

What was really surprising was the fact that they actually led 52-35 early in the second half. They really didn’t do anything exceptionally well as a team to earn that lead. I guess they shot better than usual, but they still weren’t rebounding and they certainly weren’t passing the ball well. Eric Hayes and Adrian Bowie played out of their minds for the first 25 minutes or so. Greivis Vasquez did very little. Dave Neal continues his long plunge back to Earth. Landon Milbourne, who continues to improve week in and week out, had an average game. And can someone tell me why Braxton Dupree still has a scholarship? I’m tired of seeing rebounds hit him square in the chest, only to watch the ball bounce to the other team or out of bounds.

I really don’t need to spend a whole lot of time on that loss to Miami. Any Maryland fan worth his or her wait could see the loss coming with about 10 minutes to go in the game. Maryland stopped guarding the perimeter and they stopped pressing the Hurricanes. You leave Jack McClinton (another Baltimore player that isn’t wearing Maryland red) open and he’s going to make shots. Turns out he’s a pretty good player (sarcasm alert). They also stopped running up and down the court. Once they settled in for a half court game, they had no chance. Even with a 17-point cushion.

I also don’t need to talk about the game with Florida State a whole lot either. Had the Terps gone to Miami and lost in the fashion that I expected them to, then maybe they’d go into Tallahassee and play well. However, consider the way they lost, I think they’ll still be in shock. The noon start probably insures that they’ll sleepwalk through at least the first half. Toney Douglas is almost guaranteed to go for 20 to 25. FSU also has some nice interior players. Freshman Chris Singleton looked real good in a tough win at NC State. Uche Echefu, Soloman Alabi and Ryan Reid all give the Seminoles good minutes inside. Derwin Kitchen is a similar player to Von Wafer when Wafer played with Al Thornton. If you focued too much on Thornton, then Wafer could beat you. Otherwise, he’d be a solid role player. If the Terps focus too much on Douglas, Kitchen is good for a couple of big threes late in the game. The Noles even have Deividas Dulkys…their very own Lithuanian! Guarantee he’ll make a key three somewhere in this game. I still don’t expect too much from the Terps, and unless they come out like gang-busters, I don’t see them winning this game.

Florida State 68
Maryland 63

ACC PICKS:

(so far a perfect 10 for 10)

NC State 76, Georgia Tech 68
Clemson 87, Wake Forest 84
Virginia Tech 70, Boston College 66
North Carolina 83, Miami 65