If you are a fan of the University of Maryland Terrapins, it is hard to imagine a more disheartening day than today March 13th, 2011.  This is the day we saw Maryland’s streak of 17 consecutive post-season births end. While everyone knew the Terps would not be selected to the NCAA Tournament, the majority of Maryland fans and prognosticators (with Patrick Stevens of the Washington Times as a notable exception) believed that the Terps would be selected to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT).

Nobody goes into a season desiring to be part of the NIT, but once Maryland lost to Duke in the ACCT Friday night, I was looking forward to some additional games for the Terps against decent competition. Additional experience for the players that will be returning for the 2011-12 season.

Having not been selected for the NIT (and to have been looking forward to entry to that tournament) hammers home the failure of this 2010-11 season. Yes, the Terps came into the year having to replace the talent and experience of 3 Senior starters; but reloading is part of college basketball. This is now the 4th time in 7 years that Maryland has not made the NCAA Tournament. That is an unacceptable ratio for this program. As much as I hate agreeing with Billy Packer on anything, he was 100% correct in his comments earlier this week: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/dcsportsbog/2011/0/billy_packer_maryland_should_n.html

Maryland should be a program that is never out of the Top 25.  The Terps play in what is historically the best college conference, which is always a sell to recruits. MD gets media exposure in two large media markets, complete with huge amounts of National caliber recruits. The Comcast Center is as good of an arena that exists on any college campus, and Gary Williams is a Hall of Fame caliber Coach. Programs do have down/rebuilding years, (Even North Carolina was in the NIT just last year) but the Terps should be doing more damage on a National level.

Hopefully the point I am making is clear. If not, let me state it again. Missing the NCAAT 4 times in 7 years is not acceptable. This program should annually be in the Top 25, and competing Nationally should be the expectation, not the anomaly.

That said, anyone that is writing off Gary Williams and the University of Maryland does so at their own peril. Just last-year, the Terps shared the conference title with the eventual National Champion. It was just last-year that Coach Williams was the ACC’s Coach of the Year. The Terps had a team built to make a March run, but lost to an eventual Final Four team (Michigan State) on a last-second 3. That was last-year though, and what all Terp fans are asking is, ‘What about tomorrow?” It is true that I am optimistic by nature, but I do believe even those with a glass half-full perspective should feel good about what Maryland can achieve going-forward and as soon as next-year.

Obviously Gregory, Tucker, and Bowie depart. Gregory had a very solid Senior year. Active weak-side defender, good athleticism, and consistently knocked down that 12 to 15 foot jumper.  I’m not going to kill Tucker and Bowie here. They were both good team players over the course of their 4 year careers, even if their Senior years did not go quite as planned. While they were inconsistent, you will have to replace their experience. The weaknesses to their games are apparent, but both did have positives.

I’ve said it before, and I will say it again; I think Jordan Williams will return. I  do expect Williams to investigate his draft status, and I think he will be told he projects as a late-1st rounder. While listed at 6’10, most believe he is closer to 6’8. At 6’8, and with a game currently predicated on playing back to the basket and in the post; it will be hard for him to leave. He will want to return and improve his ability to face defenders.

So, when you start talking about next year you should start with the idea that Maryland will return a 1st team All-ACC Player (and 3rd team All-American according to Jeff Goodman of FoxSports http://msn.foxsports.com/collegebasketball/story/duke-blue-devils-notre-dame-fighting-irish-represented-postseason-honors-030711 )

What else will the Terps have?

At Guard you will have Stoglin (All-Freshman team ACC), Howard, and the incoming Freshman Nick Faust, and Sterling Gibbs.

Jerry Meyer, the National Recruiting Analyst for Rivals.com stated the following to Baltimore Sports and Life about Gibbs, “Gibbs is a nice all around player who can play both the point and the two. He is not the biggest guy nor the most athletic player and that has affected his ranking. But he is smart and skilled and will be a solid contributor at Maryland.”

Meyer also commented on Faust saying, “Faust certainly has the offensive skill-set to make an impact. He is one of the best shooters in the incoming freshman class. His passing and overall ball handling needs to improve, but the ability to score is intact. He will have to improve defensively to please Coach Williams. Faust does tend to lose focus on the defensive end.” Other National analysts have also commented to Baltimore Sports and Life on Faust. Evan Daniels of Scout.com, “Faust is a flat-out scorer. He started out primarily a shooter with a quick release and deep range. But over the course of the last year he’s added an ability to attack the basket and despite his wiry frame finish through contact. I’d like to see him develop his mid-range game and continue to get stronger, but it’s hard to not be impressed with the overall make up of Faust’s game.” Paul Biancardi of ESPN,“He plays the game with high energy along with the natural ability to score the basketball in various ways. He can finish a break at the rim or with the jumper. In the half court he will make 3′s coming off screens or spotting up from his teammates penetration. Has shown the pull-up jumper along with a solid basketball IQ. At 6’6 I like his size to see over defenders and rebounding the ball. He is only 17 so he is young of age. With a strong work ethic, while hitting the weight room he can reach his potential, the talent is all there. Which means he is an All-ACC type of player in time.”

I’m feeling pretty good about Maryland crafting a solid guard rotation from those 4. What else will the Terps have? What about the SF position?

Perhaps the biggest disappointment for this 2010-11 Maryland team was the lack of development from Sean Mosley. Less anyone forget, Mosley was a 4 star recruit and a Top 50-60 National recruit from Baltimore. Mosley does a lot of things that are easy to root for. He plays physical (and beyond his size) , scraps on the floor, and is willing to play defense. As the Baltimore Sun’s Player of the Year, and the 2nd leading scorer in Maryland HS state history; the expectations were for Mosley to be more than a roll player.  Mosley struggled with the transition from being a complimentary player to being a player asked to do more.  After an off-season to decompress and evaluate, I do not think it is out of the realm to believe he can be more productive as a Senior.  Improvement or not though; Hawk Palsson, and Mychal Parker are going to push for further minutes. Palsson surprised many by playing 10 minutes a game as a Freshman. He shot 41% from 3, and is a capable shooter with his feet set. At 6’6 190 he is not the biggest, but competed on the boards when asked to play-up. Parker arrived at College Park as the most-heralded member of this 2010 Freshman class, and played in just 80 minutes.

When Parker did play, what I saw was the most athletically talented player on the Maryland roster. With his athleticism, it was evident to me to see why he was a Top 50 National recruit. My guess is you will see Parker have a career that parallels Landon Milbourne. Milbourne (another strong athlete) went from playing 77 minutes as a Freshman, to logging 814 minutes as a Sophomore. His scoring average jumped from 1 to 8.2 per game. I like Parker to make a similar jump.

Daniels commented on Parker saying, “Parker was certainly an impressive talent in high school. Sometimes it takes incoming freshman longer to get it than others. What may have held him back initially was his lack of strength. I still think he’ll be a good one at Maryland. He has the tools to be a very good player in the ACC. Always loved his athleticism and scoring mentality when he was in high school.” Biancardi had similar thoughts saying, “A physical specimen who could score the basketball. His play was inconsistent at times in his high school career and he needed to be a more committed defender. I think he just needs to play with more urgency and become a better student of the game than he will be fine.”

If you are a pessimist you will look at the SF options and say Mosley regressed, Parker did not play, and Hawk is basically unknown. If you are an optimist you will feel good about the existing options. If you are a realist you should think somewhere in-between is likely. I guess the wild-card is the thought that Maryland could at-times go Stoglin, Howard, and Faust 1-3.

If Williams returns, and you get solid to good production from the guards and wings; Maryland can be good. Baltimore Sports and Life recently interviewed Mike DeCourcy from The Sporting News who said, “I like that group. I’m disappointed in Padgett’s progress; I thought he would be more of a factor this year, and it’s too bad because that’s maybe the weakest position. If either Faust or Gibbs is ready to contribute immediately, Maryland could be top-4 in the league next season.”

What DeCourcy alludes to is my biggest concern. What do the Terps get at the PF position and from their other bigs? First, lets discuss the options. Joining Faust and Gibbs in the Freshman class will be 6’9 German Forward Martin Breunig. Here is a YouTube clip looking at Breunig in a 1×1 training situation:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7lM5_w60oE&feature=player_embedded

Even in a highlight / training video, the offensive skills are apparent. He can shoot, and he appears to have the athleticism (and strength) necessary to get to the rim and finish. On the other-hand, you know that it is still going to be a transition translating those skills to ACC play. I would be amazed if anyone could say with any decisiveness they know what Breunig will bring to Maryland next year. All I am confident in saying is that he should be in the mix to contribute. Along with Breunig will be Padgett and Pankey. It was nice to see Padgett play one of his better games of the year Thursday in the ACC Tournament against NCST. He will never have a polished offensive game, but he should be able to help on the boards and defensively. He needs to provide that more consistently as a Junior than he did as a Sophomore. Pankey has a similar skill-set to Padgett. Another good athlete with size and no offense. He has also now missed these past two years with leg injuries. If he is physically ready, he at-least provides another option.

In recent years Maryland has had Milbourne play-up at the 4, and David Neal play-up at the 5. If those two can do that as starters, I see no reason to believe that Palsson can not play-up at the 4 in limited stretches. (Especially with Williams there to help at Center). Weijs will be back as the backup Center. I think the Junior JUCO acquitted himself well when he saw the court. While he had no strength, he ran the court hard, was a shot-blocking presence and showed better offensive moves than expected. After an off-season of eating and lifting, expect Weijs to be better prepared to contribute in conference play. With Williams playing in-front of him, Maryland will be as good as any team in the Country at Center.

There you have it. A March 13th, 2011 look at Maryland’s currently anticipated 2011-12 roster. On the darkest day this program has seen in roughly two decades, there is still logical reason for optimism for the immediate future.  Additionally, the roster can be further augmented if Hubert or other decide to join.

Coach Williams is my favorite person in sports. I’m in full agreement with ESPN’s Jay Bilas who stated to Baltimore Sports and Life, “As I noted earlier, he (Williams) should be there (The Hall of Fame) already. Gary has accomplished more than many current members of the Hall of Fame. They say it is just a matter of time, but I am personally tired of waiting. He deserves to be in now. Gary Williams is one of the best coaches in the history of this game. Period. His accomplishments and longevity put him on the ACC’s Mount Rushmore with Dean Smith and Coach K.”

As big of a Gary Williams fan as I am, if Jordan Williams returns and that roster is an 8-10 win bubble team; I’ll be in agreement that it is time for Gary to go. While I’d like Gary to Coach forever, what I realistically want (hope?) is for Jordan to stay the next two years and Gary to leave after that. I think the talent exists for Maryland to go from missing even the NIT tonight, to being a factor Nationally these next two seasons.

Anyone that has followed the career of Coach Williams knows that Maryland has historically responded best when pushed into a corner. Between now and next November, Maryland and Coach Williams are going to be pushed into a corner. I do believe that Coach Williams and the Terps will answer the bell and come-out swinging. I think the result of that will be a vastly different Selection Sunday one year from now.

Chris Stoner
Chris Stoner

Owner

Chris Stoner founded Baltimore Sports and Life in 2009. He has appeared as a radio guest with 1090 WBAL, 105.7 The Fan, CBS 1300, Q1370, WOYK 1350, WKAV 1400, and WNST 1570. He has also been interviewed by The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore Business Journal, and PressBox (TV). As Owner, his responsibilities include serving as the Managing Editor, Publicist, & Sales Director.

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