Maryland

NABC All-Star Game Rosters Announced

Press Release — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 15:24:37 -0700

The NABC All-Star Game rosters were announced today. The NABC All-Star Game is a showcase for top seniors that takes place in the Alamo Dome Friday evening before the Final Four

American All-Stars
-coached by former South Carolina head coach Dave Odom

Brian Butch of Wisconsin
Jamar Butler of Ohio State
Jaycee Carroll of Utah State
Robbie Cowgill of Washington State
Sundiata Gaines of Georgia
James Gist of Maryland
Mike Green of Butler
Alex Harris of UC Santa Barbara
Robert McKiver of Houston
David Padgett of Louisville
Brian Randle of Illinois
Charles Rhodes of Mississippi State

National All-Stars
-coached by Clemson's Oliver Purnell.

Ramel Bradley of Kentucky
Will Daniels of Rhode Island
Josh Duncan of Xavier
Shan Foster of Vanderbilt
Cliff Hammonds of Clemson
Joe Jones of Texas A&M
Aleks Maric of Nebraska
DeMarcus Neslon of Duke
Sean Singletary of Virginia
Jason Thompson of Rider
Jonathan Wallace of Georgetown

Today's Game Predictions: NIT & Play-In Game

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 10:47:49 -0700

Mount St. Mary's (18-14) vs Coppin State (16-20)

7:30 PM ESPN

For an amazingly in-depth preview of these two teams.. check out Raphielle Johnson's Opening Round preview. He somehow knows more about these teams than I could ever know. But what I do know is that although Coppin State has won 12 of 13 games, the MEAC is awful (though not nearly as bad as the SWAC), and thus the Mount is the safe pick.

Prediction: Mount St. Mary's

Maryland (18-14) at Minnesota (20-13)

9:30 PM ESPN

Because NIT games are not on neutral courts, the spreads on most of the games are rather large. But this game has a relatively tight 3 point spread thanks to the perception that Maryland and the ACC are better than Minnesota and the Big Ten. Also helping Maryland's cause is that they've had some success away from College Park, beating UNC, BC, Wake Forest amongst others. But I think more important than records, is simply how much these teams want the win. Maryland collapsed late in the season (losing 5 of 6), while Minnesota showed some renewed heart in the Big Ten tournament.

Prediction: Minnesota

Rhode Island (21-11) at Creighton (21-10)

10:00 PM ESPNU

These seem like the most evenly matched teams in the NIT's opening round, but of course home-court makes Creighton a healthy 7 point favorite. The Bluejays played two A10 teams earlier in the year, knocking off St. Joseph's at home and losing in Cincy to Xavier. Those games suggest that Creighton has enough talent to beat a URI team that blew their chance to make the Big Dance, losing 7 of 8 games.. many of which went down to the wire. Against the spread, I actually like URI who has better individual talent, but the Rams struggle to win close games.

Prediction: Creighton

Previous Game of the Night (Predictions, 100-59)

March 15th - Kansas vs Texas (2-1)

March 14th - St. Joseph's vs Temple (1-2)

March 13th - Ohio State vs Michigan State (2-1)

March 12th - Arizona State at USC (2-1)

March 12th - Syracuse vs Villanova (2-1)

March 11th - IUPUI at Oral Roberts (3-0)

March 10th - Gonzaga at San Diego (1-2)

March 9th - Florida at Kentucky (1-2)

March 8th - UNC at Duke (2-1)

March 5th - Tennessee at Florida (2-1)

March 4th - UNLV at New Mexico (3-0)

March 3rd - Texas Tech at Kansas (3-0)

March 2nd - Clemson at Maryland (1-2)

2008 NIT Capsule: Maryland

Joel Welser — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 15:48:41 -0700

Maryland Terrapins

Atlantic Coast Conference (18-14, 8-8)

Big Wins: 1/19 at North Carolina (82-80), 2/2 at Georgia Tech (88-86), 2/16 Florida State (82-72)

Bad Losses: 11/20 vs Missouri (70-84), 12/9 Boston College (78-81), 3/9 at Virginia (76-91)

Last NCAA Appearance: 2007, Second Round loss to Butler

Coach: Gary Williams (27-14 in 15 NCAA appearances)

Probable Starters:

Greivis Vasquez, Sophomore, Guard, 17.3 ppg, 6.9 apg, 5.7 rpg

Eric Hayes, Sophomore, Guard, 10.3 ppg, 4.4 apg, 3.3 rpg

Landon Milbourne, Sophomore, Forward, 8.5 ppg, 3.6 rpg

James Gist, Senior, Forward, 15.8 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 2.3 bpg

Bambale Osby, Senior, Forward, 11.2 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 2.1 bpg

Key Roleplayers:

Cliff Tucker, Freshman, Guard, 3.9 ppg, 1.4 apg

Adrian Bowie, Freshman, Guard, 3.7 ppg, 1.6 rpg

Braxton Dupree, Freshman, Center, 2.3 ppg, 2.1 rpg

Why They Can Surprise:

Maryland has two of the best shot blockers in the game. James Gist and Bambale Osby both average over two blocks per game and their presence has a huge effect on the overall Terrapin defense. With Gist and Osby on the floor, it becomes extremely difficult for an opponent to find easy buckets in the paint. As a team, Maryland allows the opposition to shoot under 40 percent from the floor.

Yet, Gist and Osby do not just contribute on the defensive end. Gist averages 15.8 points and 7.8 rebounds per game. He can step out and hit the mid-range jumper and occasionally even the three-pointer. Osby will stick around the paint more often than not and he has become a surprisingly decent interior scorer. The 6-8 Osby was supposed to be a guy who would do the dirty work and grab some rebounds, which he is still very good at, but his ability to score in the paint has created space for the rest of the team on the offensive end.

Why They Can Disappoint:

Greivis Vasquez and Eric Hayes learned the ropes last year as freshmen, but they are still a relatively young duo who can get on bad streaks of committing turnovers. Vasquez will dish out 6.9 assists per game, but he also turns it over 4.5 times. Hayes is the steadier leader of the two and many times he will take over the ball handling duties from Vasquez late in the game. The bench is even less experienced than the starting backcourt. Cliff Tucker, Adrian Bowie and Braxton Dupree are all freshmen and the Terps have the least productive bench of any team in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Who To Watch:

Landon Milbourne will not score as much as the sophomores in the backcourt or the seniors in the frontcourt, but he is the piece that ties the groups together. At 6-7, Milbourne can help out on the glass, but he is also a decent shooter. Milbourne has yet to live up to his potential, but when he plays well, Maryland usually plays well.

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Team of the Moment: Maryland

Raphielle Johnson — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 20:47:50 -0700

Maryland 18-14 (8-8 ACC) Computer numbers (courtesy of kenpom.com; not counting Thursday's games): RPI 69, SOS 16. Result today: Lost 71-68 to Boston College in the first round of the ACC Tournament. "It's a team that's on the cusp of being very good, or they just...go bipolar." Those are the words of Raycom play-by-play announcer Tim Brant just before a Josh Southern jump hook made the score 60-50 Boston College. And they couldn't be more fitting for a team that went from up double digits to behind in just a matter of minutes tonight. There's plenty of physical talent, but something has been missing in the mental department for just about the entire season for the Terps. Now, they may as well skip out on the selection show on Sunday as two of their last three losses have come against two of the worst teams in the ACC in Virginia and BC. Add in a stunning loss to Clemson after leading by twenty in the second half and you have a team that looks quite appealing to NIT organizers. On the clock: Arizona. The final game of the night matches a Wildcat team with very good computer numbers, but they've been hit or miss of late when it comes to the "eye test". Yes, a lot of people can whip Oregon State, but can they put up an impressive effort against Stanford? We'll have to tune in and see.

Picture of the Day: Maryland Blows a 20 Point Lead

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 08:26:17 -0800

Thanks to our friends over at Icon Sports Media, we now have access to thousands of great college basketball photos to use on the site. Each day, CHN will feature a Picture of the Day, which might include a newsworthy, funny, or simply interesting subject. At the bottom will be a caption or headline that might be informative or amusing. The possibilities are endless!

Greivis Vasquez

Greivis Vasquez looks shocked after Maryland somehow blew a 20 point lead to Clemson.. at home. The loss knocks the Terps back to 18-12 overall and in danger of missing out on the NCAA Tournament.

- Check out recent Pictures of the Day!

- Also check out the Cheerleader of the Day!

Buzzer Beater: The Weekend Review

Jason Brubaker — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 06:35:23 -0800

- The NIT would like to officially welcome Syracuse to the mix, after a bizarre late-game collapse against Pitt on Saturday. The Orange may have been done in by a no-call when Paul Harris was stripped of the ball underneath the basket, but bad calls don't explain blowing an 11-point lead in the final three minutes. Barring a surprise run through the Big East Tournament, the Orange, now7-9 in the conference, are likely on the wrong side of the bubble for the second straight year.

- Maryland also didn’t do themselves any favors after inexplicably blowing a 20-point second half lead and falling at home to Clemson. The Terps may need a win or two in the ACC Tourney to feel good about their chances after this latest setback.

- Hats off to Boston College's Tyrese Rice. In case you spent the weekend in a cave, the junior point guard poured in a career-high 34 points against #2 North Carolina...in the first half. Rice's amazing display included eight three-pointers, and he actually led the entire Tar Heels team until five minutes remained in the first half. Slowed considerably in the second half, Rice would still finish the game with 46 points. UNC's depth enabled them to escape with a win, but Rice's shooting display won't soon be forgotten.

- Congratulations to Cornell, who earned their first bid to the NCAA Tournament since 1988 with a 86-53 win over Harvard. Like many Ivy League teams, the Big Red won't razzle-dazzle you, but they will play sound, fundamental basketball and won't beat themselves. And for those who think this just means they'll be served up on a platter to the likes of UCLA or Memphis, keep in mind that Cornell gave Duke all they wanted in a January match-up at Cameron, eventually falling short 81-67.

- Question for Kansas State players and coaches: I know basketball is a team game, and one man can't beat five....but is there a reason Michael Beasley doesn't touch the ball on every possession? The super-frosh is shooting 55% from the field, averaging 26+ points per game...yet there were stretches of five or six possessions against Kansas where he didn't even see the ball. Granted, that may not have affected the outcome against a fired-up KU squad, but if I'm a guard for K-State, my first, second and third options are to get the ball to #30 - period.

- Brook Lopez of Stanford is quietly becoming one of the best big men in college basketball. The seven-foot sophomore poured in 25 points in a big win over Washington State Saturday, as the Cardinal improved to 24-4 on the season. Stanford, now winners of six of their last seven, is looking like a team no one will want to play in the tournament.

- Big ups to Texas Tech's Alan Voskuil and Georgetown's Jonathan Wallace, who both nailed crucial free throws in victories on Saturday. Wallace calmly nailed three with less than three seconds left to tie the game at Marquette, a game the Hoyas would win in overtime. Meanwhile, Voskuil went 10-10 from the line, including six in the final minutes, as the Red Raiders stunned Texas 83-80.

- Can anyone figure out Texas A&M? The Aggies were pounded by Oklahoma on Saturday, 64-37, just four days after laying a 44-point beatdown (in which they scored 98 points) on Texas Tech. The Aggies, up and down all year, will still be dancing this year, but who knows how long they'll stick around?

- Louisville continues to impress, winning their ninth game in a row with a victory over Villanova. Included in that stretch are wins over Georgetown, Pitt, Marquette and Notre Dame. The Cards are peaking at just the right time, and appear to have the ingredients for a deep tourney run.

- Joey Dorsey...please just play basketball. The talented but fiery Memphis big man had to be restrained before the game at Southern Miss after jawing with some players during warm-ups..yet another incident in a career full of them. Dorsey is a fantastic rebounder and defender, but his lack of self-control might be the biggest factor in determining how far the Tigers go this year.

- And finally, congratulation to Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski, who earned his 800th career victory over N.C. State on Saturday. The Devils overcame a 13-point second half deficit with timely shooting to get Coach K to the vaunted mark. There are plenty of Duke haters out there, but there's no denying that Coach K is one of the best ever to walk the sidelines.

Games of the Day: Clemson at Maryland

Shawn Siegel — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 08:54:35 -0800

A companion to our daily Three Stars of the Day, we present the top three Games of the Night.

Clemson (20-7) at Maryland (18-11)

7:30 PM FSN

Are the Terps a lock to make the Big Dance? Not yet.. they have some work to do. Take away the UNC game.. and their 2nd best win is against #69 Florida State. That's pretty sad for an ACC team. Realistically, tournament-bound teams are supposed to be favored against Clemson at home.. and the fact this is a pick-em game in Vegas shows you how little those in the know respect Maryland. This is their final regular season chance to prove that UNC wasn't just a fluke.

Prediction: Maryland

Temple (15-12) at Saint Joseph's (17-9)

7:00 PM

This is a must win for the Hawks. I have them in the field of 65 as of now (barely), but other's have them on the outside looking in. A loss tonight and they're done.. not so much because of what they've accomplished, but because they have a brutal finish to the regular season. Games against Xavier and at Dayton remain. At the very least, a win locks up a .500 or better finish in the A10.

Prediction: Saint Joseph's

#12 Indiana (24-4) at #15 Michigan State (22-6)

2:00 PM CBS

This is the day's premier game in terms of overall ranking, but it's pretty meaningless except for seeding purposes. Will Michigan State be a 5 or a 6 seed.. such drama. In 2008, the Spartans have only beaten one half-decent team (Purdue on January 8th). But their 5 point favorites because they haven't lost a home game all year. That trend should continue today, crushing whatever Big Ten title hopes IU had.

Prediction: Michigan State

Previous Game of the Night (Predictions, 74-46)

February 28th - Maryland at Wake Forest (2-1)

February 27th - Miami at Clemson (2-1)

February 26th - Tennessee at Vanderbilt (0-3)

February 25th - Marquette at Villanova (2-1)

February 21st - South Alabama at WKU (1-2)

February 20th - UNC at NC State (3-0)

February 19th - Purdue at Indiana (2-1)

February 18th - Texas A&M at Texas (2-1)

February 16th - Stanford at Arizona (1-2)

February 14th - Wisconsin at Indiana (2-1)

February 12th - Michigan State at Purdue (2-1)

February 11th - Kansas at Texas (2-1)

February 10th - Indiana at Ohio State (2-1)

February 9th - Georgetown at Louisville (2-1)

February 7th - UCLA at Washington State (2-1)

February 6th - Duke at North Carolina (1-2)

February 5th - Florida at Tennessee (2-1)

February 4th - Gonzaga at SMC (1-2)

January 30th - Indiana at Wisconsin (1-2)

January 29th - VCU at George Mason (2-1)

January 28th - Louisville at UCONN (1-2)

January 27th - Duke at Maryland (2-1)

January 26th - Georgetown at West Virginia (3-0)

January 24rd - Dayton at Xavier (2-1)

January 22nd - Akron at Kent State (2-1)

January 21st - Drake at Creighton (1-2)

January 20th - Texas at Oklahoma State (3-0)

January 19th - Marquette at UCONN (2-1)

January 18th - Illinois State at Drake (2-1)

January 17th - Vanderbilt at Tennessee (2-1)

January 14th - Georgetown at Pittsburgh (2-1)

January 12th - Stanford at Oregon (3-0)

January 9th - Rhode Island at Dayton (2-1)

January 8th - Florida at Alabama (2-1)

January 7th - Robert Morris at Boston College (1-2)

January 6th - North Carolina at Clemson (2-1)

January 5th - Western Kentucky at South Alabama (3-0)

January 4th - American at Brown (0-3)

January 3rd - UCLA at Stanford (3-0)

January 2nd - Houston at UMASS (2-1)

Games of the Night: Maryland at Wake Forest

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 08:37:22 -0800

Maryland (17-11) at Wake Forest (16-9)

8:00 PM

Considering there are multiple games featuring ranked teams tonight on national TV, it might be odd to put Maryland/Wake as the Game of the Night. But no matchup has bigger NCAA Tournament implications. Most analysts, including Lunardi, have Maryland in the field of 65, but Wake on the outside. Yet Wake has a better RPI (65 to 69), more Top 50 wins (3 to 1), and virtually the same record. Though Wake doesn't necessarily deserve to be a Tournament team, once Wake wins tonight, there really can be no justification for why the Terps are still inside the bubble.

Prediction: Wake Forest

#4 UCLA (24-3) at Arizona State (17-9)

10:30 PM

Arizona State is certainly on the bubble.. and a win tonight would go a long way towards securing their tournament bid. The problem is that ASU hasn't beaten UCLA since February of 2004, and the last time these teams met.. the Bruins just romped. This why the Sun Devils are 7 point home underdogs. I think this game will be close and I might take ASU against the spread, but UCLA is a far superior team.

Prediction: UCLA

#17 Notre Dame (21-5) at #18 Louisville (22-6)

7:00 PM ESPN

It came down to this game or MSU at Wisconsin for the final spot. Both feature ranked teams near the top of their respective conferences. But the problem with both Notre Dame and Michigan State is that neither has proven they can get it done on the road. Both teams have beaten lesser teams on the road, but failed to come close against the top contenders. Thus there's little reason to think ND can win tonight (or that MSU can win at Wiscy).

Prediction: Louisville

Previous Game of the Night (Predictions, 72-45)

February 27th - Miami at Clemson (2-1)

February 26th - Tennessee at Vanderbilt (0-3)

February 25th - Marquette at Villanova (2-1)

February 21st - South Alabama at WKU (1-2)

February 20th - UNC at NC State (3-0)

February 19th - Purdue at Indiana (2-1)

February 18th - Texas A&M at Texas (2-1)

February 16th - Stanford at Arizona (1-2)

February 14th - Wisconsin at Indiana (2-1)

February 12th - Michigan State at Purdue (2-1)

February 11th - Kansas at Texas (2-1)

February 10th - Indiana at Ohio State (2-1)

February 9th - Georgetown at Louisville (2-1)

February 7th - UCLA at Washington State (2-1)

February 6th - Duke at North Carolina (1-2)

February 5th - Florida at Tennessee (2-1)

February 4th - Gonzaga at SMC (1-2)

January 30th - Indiana at Wisconsin (1-2)

January 29th - VCU at George Mason (2-1)

January 28th - Louisville at UCONN (1-2)

January 27th - Duke at Maryland (2-1)

January 26th - Georgetown at West Virginia (3-0)

January 24rd - Dayton at Xavier (2-1)

January 22nd - Akron at Kent State (2-1)

January 21st - Drake at Creighton (1-2)

January 20th - Texas at Oklahoma State (3-0)

January 19th - Marquette at UCONN (2-1)

January 18th - Illinois State at Drake (2-1)

January 17th - Vanderbilt at Tennessee (2-1)

January 14th - Georgetown at Pittsburgh (2-1)

January 12th - Stanford at Oregon (3-0)

January 9th - Rhode Island at Dayton (2-1)

January 8th - Florida at Alabama (2-1)

January 7th - Robert Morris at Boston College (1-2)

January 6th - North Carolina at Clemson (2-1)

January 5th - Western Kentucky at South Alabama (3-0)

January 4th - American at Brown (0-3)

January 3rd - UCLA at Stanford (3-0)

January 2nd - Houston at UMASS (2-1)

Picture of the Day: Landon Milbourne Dunks On FSU

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 06:03:42 -0800

Picture of the Day

Landon Milbourne Dunks on FSU

This is a tremendous picture of Maryland's Landon Milbourne throwing it down lefty-style over Uche Echefu. Osby's admiring fro in the background only adds to this pic's overall quality. Helped by Milbourne's theatrics, the Terps came back from an early deficit on Satruday to beat FSU, and important win for their tourney hopes. A video of this jam can be found here.

- Check out recent Pictures of the Day!

ACC: All-January

Jeff Fox — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 07:33:06 -0800

It’s strange times in the ACC, as only two teams are nationally ranked. Not surprisingly, those two teams happen to be Duke and North Carolina, who are both heads and shoulders above the rest of the field in the conference. Also not surprisingly, three out of the five spots on the ACC All-January team are taken by Blue Devils and Tar Heels.

Guard – Ty Lawson – North Carolina – SO
14.1ppg, 6.0apg, 1.9spg
Best game – Jan 23rd – Miami (FL) – 23 points, 10 assists, 5 boards

As important as Tyler Hansbrough is to Carolina’s success, it can be argued that the play of Ty Lawson is just as crucial (see the Duke loss last night). The speedy (perhaps an understatement – what is quicker than speedy?) point guard had another stellar January – 16 points, seven assists and four boards a game. Most importantly, he only turned the ball over 16 times in eight games.

Guard – Tyrese Rice – Boston College – JR
19.8ppg, 4.9apg, 3.6rpg
Best game – Jan 12th – Wake Forest – 32 points, 8 assists, 6 boards

The second of three Ty’s in this month’s list, Tyrese Rice continues to lead a young Eagles’ team that only has three upperclassmen on the roster. His January averages of 21 points, four boards & four assists includes his monster game versus Wake mentioned above, where he went 11-11 from the charity stripe.

Guard – DeMarcus Nelson – Duke – SR
15.3ppg, 5.9rpg, 3.1apg
Best game – Jan 27th – Maryland – 27 points, 7 boards, 4 assists, 4 steals

TyMarcus, oops – DeMarcus, Nelson has gotten steadily stronger for the Dukies as the season has progressed. The senior leader has been showing off his all-around game, filling up the points, rebounds, assists & steals columns (January averages – 18 points, six boards, three assists, two steals). He’ll have to keep it up if undersized Duke has a shot at a National Championship.

Forward - James Gist – Maryland – SR
15.4ppg, 7.9rpg, 2.4bpg
Best game – Jan 8th – Holy Cross – 22 points, 9 boards, 5 blocks

January was a big month for the Terrapins (6-2) and for James Gist (19 points, eight boards, and two blocks per game). It didn’t get any bigger than on January 19th when they went into Chapel Hill and handed Carolina their first loss of the year. Gist had 22 points and 13 boards that game.

Forward – Tyler Hansbrough – North Carolina – JR
21.8ppg, 10.4rpg, 1.4spg
Best game – Jan 16th – Georgia Tech – 27 points, 11 boards, 3 steals

The third man in our triple threat of Ty’s, Tyler Hansbrough is far and away the best player in the ACC. January was no different, as he averaged 21 points and 10 boards and notched four double-doubles. The ACC might as well give him its player of the year award now.

Up next – Big 10