In his first season as the Head Coach of the University of Maryland, Coach Turgeon’s Terrapins are currently 8-3. To take a look at the Terps season so far, and to look ahead at what awaits MD in 2012 (and beyond), Baltimore Sports and Life has reached out to Seth Davis. Davis is recognized as one of the premier College Basketball analysts, for his work with Sports Illustrated, and CBS Sports.

You can Davis’ work with Sports Illustrated at:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/writers/seth_davis/archive/index.html

You can find Davis on Twitter at:
http://twitter.com/#!/SethDavisHoops

Baltimore Sports and Life thanks Mr. Davis for taking the time to answer a few questions.

Baltimore Sports and Life: “I have been pleased overall by what the Terps have gotten so far out of their bigs Padgett, Pankey, and Weijs. I thought before the year started that each of this trio had good athleticism, could run the court well, and help by blocking shots and getting on the glass.

They’ve provided more offense than I expected. During the initial 11 games, their individual averages are:
Padgett: 24 mts per game, 9.7 ppg, 6.7 boards, .519 FG%
Pankey: 22.1 mts per game, 7 ppg, 5.7 boards, .529 FG%
Weijs: 15.7 mts per game, 3.1 ppg, 2.9 boards, .577 FG%

Padgett has scored in double-figures 7 times, and has 8 games with at-least 7 rebounds.
Pankey has scored 13 points 4 times, and has 3 games with at-least 8 rebounds. He also has 8 games with at-least 1 block.
Weijs has scored at-least 4 points in 6 games, has 7 games with at-least 3 rebounds, and has blocked 3 shots in each of the past 2 games.

Has MD gotten more out of this group, than you anticipated?”

Davis: “I can’t say they’ve contributed more than I anticipated. In the first place, given their limited experience (except for Padgett perhaps), it was hard to know what to expect from this group. I know Padgett was a pretty heralded recruit who wasn’t as productive as the team hoped he would be out of the gate, but the talent is there, so I’m not surprised to see him experience an uptick. Overall, though, let’s be honest, those are not exactly huge numbers. Most teams in college basketball don’t get a whole lot of offense out of their frontcourt, but this area is clearly a major weakness for Maryland. It’s part of the reason they are so hopeful that Alex Len will be able to make a difference off the bat.”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “The 7’1, 225 lb Ukrainian Olexiy ‘Alex’ Len made his MD debut 12/28 against Albany, after being suspended for the initial 10 games of the year. At the 2010 U18 European Championships, Len averaged 16 ppg, 11.4 boards, and 4.3 blocks. Against the Great Danes, Len had 14 points, 8 boards, and 3 blocks as he showed an abundance of athleticism. Impressively, he was given the start right away, in large part due to how he was performing in practice. Jeff Goodman from CBS Sports tweeted today that a NBA scout who saw Len last night, believes Len will ultimately be a 1st round selection.  What do you think will be the biggest change for Len, as he transitions to ACC play and the American game?”

Davis: “I’ve never seen Alex play, so I can’t attest to how good he really is. But for most big men his age, the biggest adjustment is learning to play against guys who are as big if not bigger (and stronger) than you are. Guards have an easier time adjusting because they are used to the size differential. My understanding is that Alex is not the strongest cat around, so he can expect to get pushed around a lot until he’s able to start pushing back.”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “Another recently returning player is Pe’Shon Howard, who made his season debut against Radford 12/23. Howard is not going to wow anyone with his athleticism, but he is a strong interior passer, and was regularly knocking down open 3’s as last year ended. I thought Howard best ran the offense last year in the ½ court. Heading into this year, prior to his injury, what did you like best about Howard? Where did you feel he needed to improve the most?”

Davis: “I like Howard’s moxie, and frankly I was surprised he didn’t have a better freshman year. Effort and consistency usually come with experience, so it remains to be seen whether he’s able to apply himself at a higher level. It also doesn’t help for him to miss the first half of the season. Often times, when a player comes in that far behind he never really catches up.”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “It has been a bit of a bounce-back year for the Senior Mosley. After seeing his numbers dip across the board last year, he is consistently playing better. Mosley is attempting more 3’s than ever (3.2 per game this year vs. 1.6 last year) and making 40% of his attempts as compared to 27% last year. His FT %, and rebounding has also increased back to his Sophomore levels. He is averaging 7.5 FG attempts per game. Should he be more aggressive looking for his shot?”

Davis: “I wouldn’t say he should be more aggressive. I’d say he should continue to be aggressive. Maryland is not going to become an NCAA tournament team because Sean Mosely is scoring 30 points per game.”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “Stoglin had a stretch of 5 conference games last February where he averaged 23 ppg. For his Freshman year, he shot 46% from the floor, 36% from 3, 83% from the line, averaging 11.4 ppg for the year. The 6’1, 185 lb guard was a 2x ACC Rookie of the Week, and named to the ACC All-Freshman team.

With limited offensive scoring around him, Stoglin has jumped his FGA’s from 8.6 to 15.9, and is getting to the line for 8.2 attempts per game. This has allowed Stoglin to increase his scoring to 21.5 ppg.  Even if Len and Howard drag down Stoglin’s scoring, I think his impact will remain. Where do you rank Stoglin Nationally as a scorer? Thoughts on where you believe his overall game can improve?”

Davis: “If Terrell Stoglin were on a better team, people would be talking about him as an All-American. He has had a spectacular year so far, though of course the conference season hasn’t even begun. The challenge for him will be maintaining that pace against defenses that are geared to stop him. Any coach that prepares a gameplan against Maryland is going to put Stoglin at the top. That is something you can’t prepare for. You can only experience it. I’m looking forward to watching Stoglin live and learn.”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “I like the Freshman Nick Faust a lot, but he has been a different player than I expected. The scouting reports I saw on Faust pointed to a pretty quality shooter, especially from intermediate range, with mediocre athleticism, and questions about his ability to help defensively.  So far, Faust has shown to be a better athlete than described, but not as good of a shot. I see a guy that when he works hard on the defensive end, causes problems for opposing players with his long-arms.

Any evaluation of Faust’s early play has to be clearly cognizant of the fact that he has been playing out of position at the 1, and the jump to College overall. Through the initial 11 games of his collegiate career, Faust is averaging 7.4 ppg, 4.1 boards, 2.5 assists, and 1 steal. He has had 7 games with at-least 7 points, and 2 games with at-least 13 points.

On the other-hand, Faust is averaging just 31% from the floor, 17% from 3 (5 of 30), and 54.5% (24 of 44) from the FT line. (He has made 12 of his last 16.)

I’m excited to see if his numbers improve, as he moves back to his natural position. I’d like to see him use his height more, and back down defenders.  What have been your initial impressions of Faust?”

Davis: “I honestly haven’t seen Maryland enough to have an opinion on Faust. But I’ll be watching.”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “Mychal Parker was a Top 50ish player in the class of 2010, who played sparingly as a Freshman. Due to necessity, Parker has seen his minutes per game jump from 6.2 last year to 21.5 as a Sophomore. In Maryland’s 11 games, Parker has scored at-least 5 points eight times. He has had at-least 5 boards five times. His athleticism has been best on display with his work on the glass and occasionally shown in transition. He typically plays hard, but he often is prone to lazy mistakes. I’ve noticed several mental lapses on in-bounds in the back-court and the baseline. He is 4 of 13 on 3 point attempts, with just 3 attempts in the last 4 games combined. He is shooting just 53% from the foul line (20 of 38). Remarkably he has had two games where he was 0 for 4, and one game where he was 6 for 6. His best two games of the year have been against Colorado and Notre Dame. Those were also the two games where he played the most minutes. Do you see a player with the tools to raise his game to another level?”

Davis: “See previous answer.”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “Colorado appears to be a middle of the pack PAC 12 team, and Notre Dame without Abromaitis will probably struggle in the Big East. Still, the Terps have to be pleased with their neutral court victories over each. MD’s biggest remaining out of conference game is Temple in Philadelphia January 21st. What have you seen out of the Owls so far? If the Terps were to win that game, would you see that as a solid OOC resume?”

Davis: “Temple is a pretty good team, but not a great one. I’m not sure those wins over Notre Dame and Colorado are going to help Maryland all that much if the Terps are on the bubble. But if they had lost, it would have hurt. Temple is one of those games that can help more than it can hurt, which means it’s imperative for Maryland to win the game. I’ve seen Temple play a couple of times this season. They have a solid, veteran backcourt of Ramone Moore and Juan Fernandez, but they are not as strong up front as they’ve been in the past. Temple can hurt you more with their style than anything else. Maryland has to be prepared to play slow-it-down, grind-it-out basketball, and it’s not clear yet if the Terps know how to win that way. Mark Turgeon’s teams have done that in the past, so maybe that’s a hopeful sign.”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “MD is 8-3 with two home games against Samford, and Cornell prior to entering ACC play. With the return of Howard, and Len, the 16 minutes per game that the walk-ons Auslander and Thomas had been receiving has ended. Beyond UNC and Duke, what are your general thoughts on the rest of the ACC? Who interests you the most? Can MD compete with the rest?”

Davis: “To be honest, there’s not a whole lot about the ACC that interests me right now. I know Florida State was the consensus number three choice, but I saw the Seminoles in person in the Bahamas, and they really have trouble scoring the ball. Virginia has a couple of nice wins (especially over Michigan) and a good post player in Mike Scott, but they’re not what I would call an exciting team. I actually think there’s some turf there for the taking for Maryland. They’re adding two key players and heading into a league that is as bad as it has been in a long, long time. Lot of reason for guarded optimism in Maryland.”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “Syracuse and Pittsburgh have agreed to join the Atlantic Coast Conference as the 13th and 14th schools. Whenever they begin play within the league, the ACC will again assume the position as the premier basketball conference. ACC Commissioner John Swofford has been clear in his comments that the ACC is ‘comfortable’ with 14 teams. Would you advocate to Swofford that the ACC should also add Connecticut, and a 16th? (Rutgers, other?)”

Davis: “I’m pretty confident that at some point, the ACC will add two more teams. Whether they’re the two you named remains to be seen. UConn is going to have a hard time getting into this league. Rutgers is a closer call but still a bit of a longshot. I think the school the ACC would really like – the one everyone would really like – is Notre Dame. But of course the Irish would have to agree to bring along football. If they do that, then the ACC will get a bonanza.”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “When there were 9 schools in the ACC, each team would play a home-and-home with the other 8 universities. If the ACC were to add UConn, and Rutgers, you could have natural North and South divisions for football, which I think could also be carried over to basketball.

ACC North: BC, UConn, ‘Cuse, Pitt, Rutgers, Maryland, Virginia, VTech
ACC South: UNC, Duke, Wake, NCST, Clemson, GaTech, FSU, Miami

With hoops, the Conference schedule is going to increase to 18 games starting next year. If two further teams (beyond Syracuse and Pittsburgh) are ever added to the league, do you think we could ever see a 22 game schedule? This would allow each team to play a home-and-home series against their own division, and one game against each team in the other division. If the league’s Coaches would never agree to a 22 game league schedule, what type of scheduling would you suggest with 16 teams?”

Davis: “I like your divisional setup. I think the jury is still out on the whole divisions thing. On the one hand, it allows you to maintain some natural rivals, but it also limits your flexibility for TV purposes. I was actually surprised the ACC wanted to go to an 18 game schedule. It gives you a lot less opportunity to play quality nonconference games. That’s why I think even if the league adds two more teams it will probably not add any more conference games. It would put everybody at a disadvantage over other conferences.”

Baltimore Sports and Life: “There are several months left in this 2011-12 season, but many Terps fans are already extremely excited about the prospects for Maryland starting with ’12-’13.

2012-2013 Roster as of today:
Guards: Stoglin (Jr), Howard (Jr), Faust (Soph), Allen (Freshman)
SF: Parker (Jr), Layman (Freshman)
Bigs: Padgett (Sr), Pankey (RS Soph),  Len (Soph), Cleare (Freshman)

Allen will give MD another capable PG, Layman is a SF, that is a Top 50ish player in ’12 Class, and Cleare is a Center that is a Top 40 player. Should the Terps also add a Top PF, do you see the makings of a team that would be capable of winning the ACC, and being a factor Nationally?”

Davis: “I haven’t seen any of those high school guys play, so it’s hard to give you a definitive answer. I would caution fans to be very patient. Recruiting rankings are vastly overrated. (Where was Juan Dixon ranked coming out of high school? Nowhere, that’s where.) Also, who knows who pans out, who goes to the NBA (wisely or unwisely), who transfers, who gets injured, etc. I do know that Maryland has a very capable coach in Mark Turgeon, and he has made some very good hires to get some inroads into the local talent pools. In the meantime, I do hope Maryland fans will support their team better than in the past. If I were a Maryland recruit, and I turned on that Florida International game and saw an empty arena, I sure would think twice about coming.”

Note from Baltimore Sports and Life: You can discuss Mr. Davis’ comments at the BSL Message Board (https://baltimoresportsandlife.com/forum).

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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