The University of Maryland dropped to 3-3 overall, with a 71-62 lost to Illinois in the annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
The Good:
1) Padgett was working hard, demanding the ball down low early on. He scored his first 4 points at the line, and had his first FG following a Faust miss, with good positioning underneath. I liked that he continued to go at the taller Leonard. The Terps gave up a 10-0 run to fall behind 47-41,with 12:25 left in the game. Coming out of a timeout, Padgett had an emphatic dunk to give MD new life. Down 49-45 he ran down Stoglin’s miss from the top of the key got the basket to fall, and got back to the line. Padgett scored a career high 16 points, had 5 boards, and a block.
2) Stoglin played the passing lanes prefectly, getting a steal and finish giving MD the early 8-2 lead. He buried a 3 to give the Terps the 23-20 lead, using a hard dribble to get space, and stepping back on the shot. Stoglin would finish his own 9-0 run with a jumper in the lane. Stoglin got MD on the board in the 2nd half, demanding the ball and getting another short jumper. He had a 3 with just over 2 and a 1/2 minutes left to pull the Terps within 4. He hit another to get MD within 5 with just over 90 seconds left. The MD guard would finish with 25 points, 8-17 from the field (including 4 of 9 from 3).
3) Pankey went hard to the rim, drawing contact and finishing for his first basket of the night. His 2nd basket would come on a short jumper. He had a nice play to force a turnover and get the ball for MD with just over 3 minutes left. Pankey finished with 7 points, 4 boards, and a block.
4) Parker had good rebounding down the stretch against Florida Gulf Coast. He was going to the boards early tonight. Following a Faust miss, he battled for the offensive board and was able to score inside. Parker finished with 5 rebounds.
5) Maryland came out playing well, working a 17-9 lead at the 10:30 mark. The Terps were rotating well on the defensive end, forcing Illinois into fouls, and avoiding picking up fouls of their own.
6) Mosley buried his first 3 point attempt of the game, curling behind two screeners. Mosley pulled MD within 1 at 51-50, with a runner off the glass. He is moving well without the ball in Turgeon’s offense.
7) After starting slow, and being challenged by Illinois; Faust hit back to back jumpers in the 2nd half. After making those two shots, he missed on what would have been a 3rd straight attempt. Despite the miss, I liked that he was actively looking to score. Down 54-51, he made an aggressive move and got fouled to get to the line.
The Bad:
1) Padgett blew a layup on a perfect touch pass from Faust. He picked up a cheap offensive foul, when he threw a shoulder while attempting to set a screen.
2) A lazy pass from Stoglin was stolen, and gave Illinois a gift two points. After his struggles at the line down the stretch against FL Gulf Coast, it was disturbing seeing him miss his three of his first four foul shot attempts tonight. Following his clutch 3 which pulled MD within 4, I think Stoglin forced his next shot.
3) Coming out of a TV timeout with a 29-23 lead, Faust blew a fast break with a poor pass. Earlier he attempted the spectacular trying to find Parker down the court, and missed the pass by 20 feet. Faust started the 2nd half by missing 2 layups on the same possession, and having a turnover on the next. With just over 5 minutes remaining, the Terps were down 7 at 59-52, and Faust missed the front-end of a 1 and 1. Faust missed all 6 of his 3 point attempts, with several really ugly shots in that mix. Faust is a better athlete, and not as good of a shooter as I expected.
4) With under a minute left in the 1st, Mosley would foul Maniscalco on a three point attempt, putting the Illinois player on the line for 3 shots. I have to assume that Mosley’s ankle was bothering him, as he finished with just 4 FG attempts. Far too low for this MD team.
5) When you have limited offensive capabilities, and are trying to pull an upset; you can not afford to have so many misses at the foul line. The Terps finished 15 of 25.
6) Maryland spent a lot of time trying to provide help defense on Leonard, and had some success doing that. However, this led to too many open looks for Maniscalco from outside.
7) The depth of Illinois, and the lack of depth for Maryland made a difference down the stretch. The Terps scored just 27 points in the 2nd half.
8) MD lost on the boards 34-27. This was competitive early, but Illinois got stronger as the game progressed.
The Ugly:
1) Plenty of students in the lower section, but way too many empty seats overall. No excuse for not having a full house tonight against a Major OOC opponent.
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.