54-47 L @Miami
Second straight post after a very disappointing loss. I'm extremely frustrated after watching an ugly, sloppy game by both teams. After the second half of the FSU game, I didn't think the Terps were capable of playing a worse 20 minutes of basketball, and then they put up a 14 spot in the first half tonight. So not too many fun links tonight, unfortunately. Let's get right to it, shall we?
On blast:
1. Coach Turgeon - After a bad loss at home on Wednesday, I would've expected to see an energized, motivated Terps team hustling after loose balls and working extra hard on the boards and defensive side of the ball. After their first loss in 14 games last year, the Terps took the floor in Coral Gables flat, lethargic, and uninspired. And during their second HORRIBLE half of basketball in a row, there were no real changes made by Turgeon (lineup or otherwise) that were effective in getting the Terps to play harder, resulting in a measly 14 point output after 20 minutes of play. I'm not talking about shooting percentages or stats. I'm talking about hustle and effort. The Terps have shown they're capable of playing hard this season, but they haven't shown much of that in the past 60 minutes of basketball. I hope Turgeon can find a way to push his players to maximum effort in the next few games. They're going to need it.
2. James Padgett, Logan Aronhalt, Jake Layman, Nick Faust, Seth Allen, Shaq Cleare, Pe'shon Howard, Charles Mitchell, Spencer Barks, and Nick Faust - Combined 13 points on 5-33 from the floor, including 2-12 from 3 and 1-4 from the FT stripe. I wasn't too impressed with the level of effort all around. The Terps just didn't look like they wanted to be on the court today. Coaching can only do so much, but at some point, the players need to decide how badly they want to win. Two players stepped up tonight, but the rest didn't show much desire to compete, and no one really showed a sense or urgency down the stretch on either side of the ball.
Guys who get to ride up front for being good at sports:
1. Dez Wells - one of the few Terps who came to play in the first half. Dez finished with 18 points on 7-11 FG while grabbing 5 boards. It was good to see SOMEONE hustle for boards and drive hard to the hole. His lone blemish were 3 turnovers, including 2 terrible offensive fouls on fast break opportunities when the Terps had numbers and should have scored. Dez needs to be a little smarter: possibly come to a jump-stop and dish off a bounce pass, rather than driving out of control and throwing behind-the-back or over-the-head passes while crashing into a stationary defender.
2. Alex Len - A very solid 16 point, 9 rebound performance. Alex had a few very nice plays down the stretch to keep the Terps in the game. You know Alex is scary-good when he's capable of having a quiet performance like this. Although Turgeon has said Alex can hit 3's like they were layups, he took a questionable 3 in a critical juncture in the second half on a play drawn up out of a timeout. If Alex (who has yet to hit a 3PFG in his career at Maryland) taking a 3 is the play we draw up out of a timeout, something has to change. With his size, he should have an easier time backing his defender down, or putting the ball on the floor and going around him, while settling less for long jump shots. He also led the team in turnovers tonight with 4.
Terps will need a win Wednesday to gain any kind of momentum continuing ACC play. The schedule doesn't get any easier from here, but a win over a (soon to be) top-15 NCST team would do wonders for their confidence. Maybe a little home cooking will serve them well. I surely hope so. GO TERPS! BEAT STATE!
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