Notice: I have been working on an independent research paper that totals near 40 pages. As a result, I have been unable to post as frequently as I would have liked.Maryland takes Houston’s hand as it prepares to dance tonight on the nation’s largest stage. But recently, the Terps, before losing to Georgia Tech in the ACC Tournament, upstaged the Duke Blue Devils in an all too familiar Maryland-Duke clash at the Comcast Center. The Devils, who are the NCAA tournament’s overall No. 1 seed this March, have always had trouble with the Terrapins when they are on the road.
In College Park, tickets to the big game were not easy to come by. It was senior day for ACC Player of the Year Greivis Vasquez, the fiery Venezuelan who knows all the buttons to push in order to get under other players’ skin. Vasquez is also explosive on the court, and a good game for him usually means a good one for the team. A bad one? Well, that goes the same way. Vasquez commands attention from television audiences and cameras. He commands respect from those he plays against and those he leads. He has assumed responsibility for charging the huddle and boosting team morale. He is as close as college basketball will get to having a Ray Lewis or an Ed Reed in the locker room.
Students camped in tents for nights to get a chance at some tickets. One pre-law student offered a voucher for hours of his future legal services to anyone willing to offer him a ticket. The Terrapin Underground, and college basketball Black Market, I’m sure, were thriving. Fans who did receive tickets, and those who watched from home or local sports bars, were not disappointed.
Senior Eric Hayes started off the scoring, giving Maryland the early lead. The Blue Devils, however, refused to quit. They dominated offensive and defensive rebounding, putting up huge numbers that, despite their weak shooting, kept them in the game early. Brian Zoubek, the 7’1” Duke senior assumed his traditional thug role, playing dirty in a way only Hines Ward could match. Regardless, Vasquez, too, started off strong, putting up a 1.000 average from the stripe and making a three-point shot to electrify the yellow-clad crowd.
The Terps began to face foul trouble early. Landon Milbourne made a three but was promptly charged with his second foul in the first four minutes of the game. Perhaps the Terrapins came out a little too fired up, a little to reckless and impulsive? The Terrapins nevertheless were off to a good start. Then, an unanticipated delay threatened to halt the Terps’ momentum, as the basket netting tore and had to be replaced.
Maryland maintained its composure, and Hayes again fired up the team, charging back from the break with an impressive left hook underneath the basket. Vasquez soon drew a charge call. He was trying to compete with Zoubeck, and took the competition a little too far. This time, the referee did not look the other way. The Terps’ poor rebounding continued, and combined with shooting woes, Maryland relinquished its impressive lead over the Devils, who climbed back into the game heading down the home stretch of the first half.
Duke senior Jon Scheyer channeled his inner J.J. Reddick (a man whom none of us in Maryland like to think fondly upon) and stepped up to the free throw line, shooting 89% for the game. Zoubeck dominated the glass. Things were turning quickly from good to bad to worse. Duke had four opportunities to make a shot, rebounding again, and again, and again, and…again, until a foul was called. Meanwhile, the Terps could simply not make a shot.
Finally, Jordan Williams made what could have been a momentum changing play. He rejected a shot by Scheyer and the Terps turned the ball down the court with a huge numbers advantage. Somehow, they found a way to mess that opportunity up too. But Cliff Tucker, the hero of this season’s earlier Georgia Tech buzzer-beater victory, refused to let the ship sink. He jammed the ball through the basket. Again, Maryland missed the opportunity to seize back momentum of the game. After making a good rebound, the Terps forced the ball and failed to score on the turnover. Sean Mosely took an unadvisable three, and his teammates joined in with their own impatient or ill-considered ball handling. The Terps were not playing smart; they were literally throwing the game away. Scheyer and Vasquez exchanged threes. Mosely and Williams missed rebounding opportunities. Another three for Scheyer. Another Duke rebound.
But then, Greivis turned it on. He got his head in the game. When Vasquez is tuned in, his concentration is evident to all who watch. So too, is his skill elevated to another level. He made a magical two pointer. An impossible shot. It left the Comcast Center trembling with earsplitting noise. If they had been given time to think, fans would have questioned how in the hell that shot went in. Vasquez went on to finish strong, shooting 5 for 5 from the line. He made two key shots at the end of the game, elevating his point total to 19 and carrying the Maryland Terrapins to an unlikely victory. Unlikely, that is, to all who read the pregame statistics or watched ESPN. Maryland fans, on the other hand, have come to expect the annual upsets over UNC and Duke when the Heels and Devils come to play in College Park. Things looked bad throughout the game, particularly during the last eight or so minutes of the first half. No, not bad. Terrible.
But Maryland fulfilled its duty to its fans. On senior night, when it really mattered, the Terps rose to the challenge. Down the stretch, they made the baskets they needed to make and stopped the shots they needed to stop. Under Maryland legend Juan Dixon’s watchful gaze, his successors did not disappoint, at least when it comes to the numbers in the scoring box. And somehow, when the buzzer went off, Maryland had, again, outlasted the big, bad ACC rival. Testudo the turtle proved dependable and loyal for another season, and rewarded Maryland fans for their loyalty, for their sleepless nights (literally), and for the head pats. Maryland defeated the Blue Devils 79 to 72. Tonight, the Terrapins will have to channel the electricity of Comcast Center, thousands of miles away in Washington State. Will they be able to keep it going on the West Coast, in front of millions of eyes, or will they let their decision-making go and impulsively run like a bull in a china shop, into early retirement?
It is likely that their egos may get the best of them. With Gary Williams named ACC Coach of the Year, and Vasquez named Player of the Year, they could have their heads in the clouds, far, far away from the basketball net. Or their early exit from the conference tournament could prove to be a much-needed dose of humility. We shall certainly hope for the second. We will also hope that the Terps are not too excited. Often, their toughest opponents are themselves, and maintaining mental composure and clarity has been difficult. If the Terrapins are able to play smart, their skill certainly exceeds that of Houston, and they should be able to pass onto the round of thirty-two. Then again, nothing is certain. Most would say the Duke Blue Devils are a stronger team than the Maryland Terrapins, and for most of last month’s game at Comcast Center, they played like the stronger team. But numbers in boxes don’t always tell the full story. We hope for tonight that they do.
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