Terps open season with win; The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

The University of Maryland Terrapins took the floor tonight against Seattle University in the first game of their 2010-11 season, winning 105-76.

This opening round game of the 2010 Coaches vs. Cancer 2k Sports Classic, was a reminder that plenty has changed since the March 21st loss to Michigan State in the 2nd-round of the NCAA Tournament. The Seattle Redhawks were out manned physically, but their willingness to go up and down the court with the Terps helped create some ugly moments particularly in the first 15 minutes of play.

I did not see a lot of surprises tonight. Everything you saw for good, and for bad was basically anticipated. There are plenty of things the Terps will need to improve, but overall I saw a lot of things to be optimistic about.

The Good:

1) The Terps are deep and athletic. Maryland gets up and down the court with ease, and has the personnel required to match-up with numerous teams.

2) The athleticism of this squad will allow them to create offense from their defense. There will be plenty of times this Maryland team struggles to run the flex-offense. They will be bailed out by their defense and ability to quickly score in transition.

3) Coach Williams got all 6 of his new faces on the court tonight, and they provided immediate dividends.

3a) Stoglin was the first non-starter into the game. He quickly changed the tempo of the Terps with some aggressive play. I liked his quickness, and his willingness to look for his own shot even when attempting to get others involved. He hit his foul-shots in the scrimmage, and hit all 9 of his foul shots tonight. That by itself could earn him minutes on the floor during close games. His quick hands helped him get 2 steals.

3b) Howard started his collegiate career with an emphatic dunk, but more importantly ran the offense better than both Bowie, or Stoglin. He is not super athletic, but I thought showed better quickness than had been advertised. Very chiseled for a Freshman, and looked very comfortable on the court. That is somewhat understandable considered he started the past 3 seasons for Oak Hill. I’ve read numerous write-ups about his flare for the game, and his passing ability. That description proved apt as he provided several quality passes, including a no-look early on. 8 assists for Howard, vs. just 3 turnovers. Also added 3 steals, and 3 boards.

3c) When Palsson signed, the belief of many was that he was destined to be a glorified practice player for most of his career. I think the scrimmage, exhibition, and this first game tonight has shown those projections were off. Coach Williams obviously likes Palsson’s hustle, strength, and shooting ability. Coach Williams is always going to find minutes for a player with those attributes. He will get even more if he shows he can play defense.

3d) It might take a little longer, but ultimately the star of this class will be the highest rated recruit – Mychal Parker. I liked that Williams found minutes for Parker on the court. In just a couple minutes of play, Parker’s athleticism was readily apparent. Towards the end of the game, Parker was called for a goal-tend where he got up close to the top of the backboard. That dunk he had with under 1:30 left was ridiculous explosion.

3e) I really liked what we saw from Weijs tonight. He runs very well for a big, and showed outstanding coordination. Sometimes you see bigs who just look awkward. That is not the case for Weijs. Even if he does not put on any more weight during the season, he is going to be a defensive presence with his shot-blocking. Weijs finished with 3 blocks, and 2 dunks.

3f) Pankey played the least out of all the newcomers, just getting a couple of minutes at the end of the game. The one thing that jumps out at you, is that he looks like he spent plenty of time in the weight-room.

4) Cliff Tucker finished with 16 points, which was good to see. What I liked best about his play tonight was that he was looking to push the ball and run every-time he could.

5) 17 points, and 15 boards for Jordan Williams tonight. We knew he had lost some weight, an it showed. Maryland is going to run, run, and run and having a big with his physicality, and hands is just ideal. He also hit 5 of his 6 foul-shots.

6) Sean Mosley was excellent offensively tonight. 7 of 9 from the floor, and 8 of 10 from the line. He often gets tagged with ‘old man skills,’ but a better description is strong fundamentals.

7) Dino Gregory was active as usual for him. He can really help the Terps if he can continue to knock down a few short jumpers a game like he did tonight. Beyond his 8 points, he contributed with 6 boards, 4 blocks, and 2 steals.

8) Maryland was 33 of 41 (80%) from the line, and made 56% of their shots from the floor. Their FG % was up because they were running and getting to the rim.

9) We will discuss what poorly for Bowie below, but he salvaged something from the night by hitting his 5 foul-shots, and playing under better control in the 2nd-half.

10) The Terps did not force up 3 point shots, taking just 8 attempts.

11) Maryland handled the boards, had 9 blocks, and 23 assists.

The Bad:

1) Bowie finished the night with 7 turnovers in 12 minutes of play. He was in foul-trouble just a couple of minutes into the game. Everyone understands that he is not a true PG, and that the Freshman are going to play plenty. I expect Bowie to play about 20 minutes a game. When he plays, he has to do what he does best – attack the rim, and look to score. That is not a PG, but that is what Bowie can bring to this team. If he gets to the rim and pushes the ball in transition, he will have an opportunity to dish to open shooters.

There has been plenty of talk about the opportunity available to the 3 Terrapin Seniors. I think they will all be served by being the best players they are, vs. trying to be the players others think they need to be.

2) 29 turnovers looks horrible in a box-score, but I am not sure how much can be gleaned from tonight. Seattle was willing to run, and that can force sloppy play. What you want to see is how Maryland handles the ball, and the offensive sets they run when they play a team that slows the tempo down.

2a) That said, the Terps made things more difficult than they needed to be at times. Too many plays they were looking for the highlight. You can expect that to improve.

3) James Padgett was the first big of the bench, and played 11 minutes tonight. On athleticism alone, he should have been a presence on the boards. 1 rebound in 11 minutes is not enough from him.

The Ugly:

1) None. Maryland was playing their first game of the year and won by 29 points. The Terps got significant contributions from 5 of their first 6 new players, and their leaders (Williams, and Mosley) stepped-up with strong games.

If the Terps play this game in mid-December, there would would plenty of negatives to talk about. For the first-time out the positives are the takeaway.

Up-Next:

Maryland will be in action again Wednesday vs. the Charleston Cougars. Former Georgia Tech Head Coach Bobby Cremins is very familiar with Coach Williams and the Terps.

Charleston is expected to compete for the Southern Conference South Division title, and be a team capable of advancing to the NCAA Tournament. The Cougars are led by Guard Andrew Goudelock who averaged over 19 points per game last year. Cremins has been quoted as stating this is the deepest team he has had during his tenure with Charleston, with up to 9 players capable of starting.

You want to see some improvement in this second game, and against Maine on Sunday before the Terps head to New York to face Pittsburgh on the 18th.