The Terps didn't want me to write a third-straight disappointing post, so they decided to pull out a win over the (14) NCST Wolfpack tonight at Comcast. What a game. Despite not making a FG for a 10-minute period in the first half, the Terps got after it on defense all night, holding the NCAA leader in team field goal percentage (52.8%) to a measly 31.1%. They played with passion and energy and looked like they wanted to win. It was quite the contrast from the team that took the court in Coral Gables on Sunday night. Dez Wells had a SICK block, Len had a sick alley-oop down the stretch, and Len bailed out Pe on the final shot. I've watched the highlights on ESPN 4 times already, and I have a feeling it won't be getting old anytime soon.
Gary was there to receive some painting at halftime (I could explain it better but don't feel like it. Still bummed he didn't fistpump) and this W was a good way to tell our former AD what's up. Thanks for bankrupting us, a-hole, but we've moved on to B1GGER and better things. I still miss Gary a lot though:
"Kathy Worthington doesn't speak for me, she has never won a national championship, she has never done anything. She's an associate AD. This is just giving you guys stuff to make me look bad."
Let's get to it!
On blast:
1. Refs - I hate when fans blame refs for a loss, or complain an inordinate amount about the officiating in general. But Mike Eades, Roger Ayers, and Raymond Styons (thank you, Yahoo Sports) were not on their game tonight. In a physical game like that, I find it hard to believe that 8 of the first 11 fouls in the second half were on the Terps. One foul in particular stands out - with about 9:28 left in the game, CJ Leslie drove to the basket and was guarded by Padge. Leslie put up the contested shot, missed, fell to the floor, and Padge collected the rebound and looked up to pass. A full 2-seconds after the shot occurred, the foul was called. Ridiculous...
(Side note: Check out this site if you want to yell better,more personal insults to the refs of your favorite college basketball team!)
2. Students who stormed the court - It's not a HUGE deal to me, and I'm not embarrassed to be a Maryland fan because of it, but really? They were 14th-ranked coming into the game despite being picked pre-season to win the ACC. That means they have under-achieved, despite a win vs then (1) Duke in Raleigh on Saturday. They're not a top-10 team, not one of our rivals, and this game didn't clinch any sort of championship (regular season or otherwise).
Guys who get to ride up front for being good at sports:
1. Terps - Sounds really lame to just pick everyone, but it was a really balanced effort tonight. Dez didn't have the best game, but he still worked his butt off on the defensive end. Pe finally hit some shots, but 9 is still too many for him to take in my opinion. All in all though, great team win and hoping it builds momentum going to Chapel Hill on Saturday.
2. Coach Turgeon - Mainly for epic postgame quotes tonight:
''I didn't come here to be mediocre. I came here to do great things. We haven't done many great things since I've been here. This is a great thing.''
''We hadn't won a big game since Greivis was here."
Was this Turgeon's "Georgetown win?" (for those who don't know what that means, see #8 on this list) Time will tell...
We'll be roadtripping to Chapel Hill on Friday afternoon for the game on Saturday. More to come from the Research Triangle on Saturday... Go Terps!
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