It's far too early to declare any game a must win, but the Terps already had three losses and just one quality win (against a decent Illinois team) in their first nine games. Boston College was not expected to be among the top ACC teams this season so winning at home against the Eagles seemed imperative. But after Greivis Vasquez was called for three straight fouls on one possession - including a technical - to foul out of the game midway through the second, a four point Terrapin lead evaporated as the team lost by three after a furious comeback.
Even without finding his stroke (1-6 from three), Vasquez was playing perhaps his best all around game with 11 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists - and perhaps most importantly - just one turnover. Paired with Eric Hayes (13 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, no turnovers) in the backcourt in their second game after switching roles, they sparked the team to a lead that got as big as 6 with 13 minutes left.
Maryland turned the ball over just 10 times on the night, easily their best performance of the season. That led to the team's most efficient offensive performance to date in its five games against quality opposition. But on the defensive side the Terps simply let Boston College get to the line to often where they converted spectacularly. The three point shot also helped put Boston College ahead even though they were judicious in their attempts (13 on the night).
This was a game that left a sour taste in the mouths of fans. While the team struggled somewhat defensively, namely the defensive boards, they also improved in other areas. The game felt like it should have been a win, especially if Vasquez had not fouled out on a questionable technical foul call in the second half. Live and learn for the Terrapins yet again. They'll have a home date with Ohio before the schedule breaks for exams.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Terps-BC Preview
Boston College will roll into the Comcast Center tonight with a record of 6-1 including wins over Rhode Island, Michigan and Saint Louis. The lone loss came in an OT loss at home against Providence, a game the Eagles were down big in the second half before making a big charge late. Like the Terps, this will be the first ACC game for the young Eagles.
After losing Jared Dudley (and Sean Williams earlier), the Eagles were expected to take a step or two back. Over the past few years, the team's offense had been anywhere from very good to stellar, but the defense had been at the opposite end of the spectrum, to the point where the Eagles ranked 239th in unadjusted defensive efficiency. With only Tyreese Rice to carry a large offensive role it seemed that the poor defense would finally catch up to the Eagles.
But the resourceful Al Skinner has overseen a transformation so far this season, as his Eagles now play good defense and win in spite of an offense that has been nothing special so far. That's largely because the Eagles now hit the defensive glass while also forcing just a few more turnovers. Boston College still isn't good in either of those two areas, but improving from sub-300 in the nation to a spot closer to respectability goes a long way.
Boston College continues to block shots - SR Tyrelle Blair leads all major conference players by blocking 15.1% of opponents two point shots so far - but unlike last year the Eagles have actually forced opponents to miss two pointers that weren't blocked. Combine that with fewer second chances, and that's a recipe for an improved defense.
Tyrese Rice has dominated the offense to no one's surprise, but the Eagles will need more. Corey Raji has been strong in his debut season, leading the team in ORtg in limited minutes while FR Rakim Sanders and SO Shamari Spears have also contributed some points to the mix while shooting well from the field.
After losing Jared Dudley (and Sean Williams earlier), the Eagles were expected to take a step or two back. Over the past few years, the team's offense had been anywhere from very good to stellar, but the defense had been at the opposite end of the spectrum, to the point where the Eagles ranked 239th in unadjusted defensive efficiency. With only Tyreese Rice to carry a large offensive role it seemed that the poor defense would finally catch up to the Eagles.
But the resourceful Al Skinner has overseen a transformation so far this season, as his Eagles now play good defense and win in spite of an offense that has been nothing special so far. That's largely because the Eagles now hit the defensive glass while also forcing just a few more turnovers. Boston College still isn't good in either of those two areas, but improving from sub-300 in the nation to a spot closer to respectability goes a long way.
Boston College continues to block shots - SR Tyrelle Blair leads all major conference players by blocking 15.1% of opponents two point shots so far - but unlike last year the Eagles have actually forced opponents to miss two pointers that weren't blocked. Combine that with fewer second chances, and that's a recipe for an improved defense.
Tyrese Rice has dominated the offense to no one's surprise, but the Eagles will need more. Corey Raji has been strong in his debut season, leading the team in ORtg in limited minutes while FR Rakim Sanders and SO Shamari Spears have also contributed some points to the mix while shooting well from the field.
Friday, December 7, 2007
Terps score season high in beating Bears
After close wins against supposed cupcakes Hampton and Northeastern earlier in the season, Maryland should have learned that no win was a guaranteed blowout. Last night's opponent, Morgan State, was perhaps better than either of those two teams, having lost close games to UConn and Miami by just four points apiece.
The Terrapins turned in their most efficient offensive output of the season, scoring a season-high 89 points while hitting 9 of 15 three pointers and cutting the turnovers down to a more managable 23% of possessions. The scoring load was balanced and led by Eric Hayes. Hayes returned to the point guard position after playing shooting guard for the team's first eight games and responded with a 19 point performance including 5 three point shots. Boom Osby contributed 16 points and 9 boards off the bench, including nine consecutive points during one stretch in the second half that stretched the lead from 11 to 18. James Gist scored 18 points and went over 1,000 for his career while Greivis Vasquez had 17 points, 6 rebounds, and 11 assists plus 7 more turnovers.
The biggest negative from this game was the continued inability of the Terps to come close to holding their own on the defensive boards, allowing Morgan State to get back about 36% of their missed shots in the form of offensive rebounds. No doubt that part of that is downside of an interior defense that relies more on blocking shots (10 last night) than playing position defense. Even so, the frustration of seeing a Terp get a hand on the ball only to have it squirt away from the opposition could drive a fan insane. The team has actually improved from last year, even with the loss of Ekene Ibekwe, so that incremental improvement might have to suffice for this year.
The Terrapins turned in their most efficient offensive output of the season, scoring a season-high 89 points while hitting 9 of 15 three pointers and cutting the turnovers down to a more managable 23% of possessions. The scoring load was balanced and led by Eric Hayes. Hayes returned to the point guard position after playing shooting guard for the team's first eight games and responded with a 19 point performance including 5 three point shots. Boom Osby contributed 16 points and 9 boards off the bench, including nine consecutive points during one stretch in the second half that stretched the lead from 11 to 18. James Gist scored 18 points and went over 1,000 for his career while Greivis Vasquez had 17 points, 6 rebounds, and 11 assists plus 7 more turnovers.
The biggest negative from this game was the continued inability of the Terps to come close to holding their own on the defensive boards, allowing Morgan State to get back about 36% of their missed shots in the form of offensive rebounds. No doubt that part of that is downside of an interior defense that relies more on blocking shots (10 last night) than playing position defense. Even so, the frustration of seeing a Terp get a hand on the ball only to have it squirt away from the opposition could drive a fan insane. The team has actually improved from last year, even with the loss of Ekene Ibekwe, so that incremental improvement might have to suffice for this year.
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
ACC Week 3
Miami (7-0): beat Alabama State and Saint John's. The Hurricanes continued their surprising undefeated streaks by nipping Alabama State and crushing Saint John's with Jack McClinton returning to the lineup after missing two games. There are no givens, but Miami has a good chance to enter the New Year at 12-1. Talk about unexpected. McClinton is the star, but keep an eye on redshirt senior Anthony King in the frontcourt. King has been very effective on the offensive end while continuing to be a dominating rebounding presence on both ends.
Duke (8-0): beat Wisconsin and Davidson. The Dukies kept on rolling, first thrashing the Badgers at Cameron before beating the fighting Stephen Curry's by six. Duke's adjusted efficiency numbers rank in the top ten on both ends of the floor. Their four component offensive and defensive numbers all rank in the top 100 in the country. After a down year it sure looks like Duke will be back to running some good teams out of the gym this season.
North Carolina (7-0): beat Ohio State and Kentucky. Two road wins over top-tier programs in the same week is always great, even if those two programs are experiencing what might be a down year. The offense keeps humming but the loss of Branden Wright and Reyshawn Terry has put the Tar Heel defense at its worst levels of the Roy Williams Era.
Clemson (7-0): beat Purdue and South Carolina. Even without James Mays the Tigers showed they could beat some major conference opposition this week. Trevor Booker has stepped up on the inside. He currently ranks 14th in the nation in DR% and 35th in BLK%.
Virginia (6-1): beat Northwestern. Who would believe that Virginia, a team dominated by backcourt scorers, actually ranks in the top six in the country in rebounding on both ends of the floor. Of the Cavaliers five most used players, none stands taller than 6-7 so it might be too much to expect these lofty numbers to continue. Even with the great defensive rebounding the Cavs' defense is borderline horrible.
North Carolina State (4-2): lost to Michigan State. The 'Pack was blown out in the ACC-Big Ten challenge against the Spartans. JJ Hickson continued his torrid freshman season, scoring 21 points, but starters Ben McCauley and Courtney Fells failed to score in a combined 44 minutes. McCauley has been particularly bad offensively as his eFG% has fallen from 58.7 to 37.0 while seeing his involvement in the offense vanish.
Florida State (8-2): beat Minnesota, Stetson, Samford. Was Al Thornton a defensive liability? We all know how great he was on the offensive end, but Florida State's defense improved from a mediocre unit (55th) to a very strong one this season (13th) with the same unit less Thornton. Of course that's far too simplistic as Thornton racked up blocks, steals and defensive rebounds. Even on a team where the four players with the most minutes are 6-3 or shorter, Florida State has clamped down on its opponents' shooting. Watch for that in conference play.
Boston College (5-1): beat Michigan, lost to Providence. Boston College would have a nice defense if it were 1980 and three pointers didn't exist. But they do, and the Eagles have been torched from long range to the tune of 36.8% on the season including 12-23 in their first loss of the season to Providence. Boston College has some guards that can fill it, but they need more defense.
Georgia Tech (3-4): lost to Indiana and Vanderbilt. The Jackets blew a late lead on the road against Indiana before being throttled by Vandy. The defense has been atrocious, giving up 1.09 points per possession and ranking outside the top 200 in nearly every meaningful category.
Virginia Tech (3-3): beat North Carolina-Ashville, lost to Penn State. It's a growing year with four freshmen in the top six. Jeff Allen has been a force and Hank Thorns and Malcolm Delaney have both shown some signs in the backcourt. It seems to be a recurring theme, but once again, the defense is not good on this team right now. The offense is not much better for a team that never takes a trip to the line.
Wake Forest (5-1): beat Iowa, South Carolina-Upstate, lost to Charlotte. The Deacs' offense was disastrous in the win over Iowa and the loss to Charlotte, piling up just 119 points in 145 possessions over the two games. If they couldn't rebound on the offensive glass as well as they do, it would be an even longer season.
Duke (8-0): beat Wisconsin and Davidson. The Dukies kept on rolling, first thrashing the Badgers at Cameron before beating the fighting Stephen Curry's by six. Duke's adjusted efficiency numbers rank in the top ten on both ends of the floor. Their four component offensive and defensive numbers all rank in the top 100 in the country. After a down year it sure looks like Duke will be back to running some good teams out of the gym this season.
North Carolina (7-0): beat Ohio State and Kentucky. Two road wins over top-tier programs in the same week is always great, even if those two programs are experiencing what might be a down year. The offense keeps humming but the loss of Branden Wright and Reyshawn Terry has put the Tar Heel defense at its worst levels of the Roy Williams Era.
Clemson (7-0): beat Purdue and South Carolina. Even without James Mays the Tigers showed they could beat some major conference opposition this week. Trevor Booker has stepped up on the inside. He currently ranks 14th in the nation in DR% and 35th in BLK%.
Virginia (6-1): beat Northwestern. Who would believe that Virginia, a team dominated by backcourt scorers, actually ranks in the top six in the country in rebounding on both ends of the floor. Of the Cavaliers five most used players, none stands taller than 6-7 so it might be too much to expect these lofty numbers to continue. Even with the great defensive rebounding the Cavs' defense is borderline horrible.
North Carolina State (4-2): lost to Michigan State. The 'Pack was blown out in the ACC-Big Ten challenge against the Spartans. JJ Hickson continued his torrid freshman season, scoring 21 points, but starters Ben McCauley and Courtney Fells failed to score in a combined 44 minutes. McCauley has been particularly bad offensively as his eFG% has fallen from 58.7 to 37.0 while seeing his involvement in the offense vanish.
Florida State (8-2): beat Minnesota, Stetson, Samford. Was Al Thornton a defensive liability? We all know how great he was on the offensive end, but Florida State's defense improved from a mediocre unit (55th) to a very strong one this season (13th) with the same unit less Thornton. Of course that's far too simplistic as Thornton racked up blocks, steals and defensive rebounds. Even on a team where the four players with the most minutes are 6-3 or shorter, Florida State has clamped down on its opponents' shooting. Watch for that in conference play.
Boston College (5-1): beat Michigan, lost to Providence. Boston College would have a nice defense if it were 1980 and three pointers didn't exist. But they do, and the Eagles have been torched from long range to the tune of 36.8% on the season including 12-23 in their first loss of the season to Providence. Boston College has some guards that can fill it, but they need more defense.
Georgia Tech (3-4): lost to Indiana and Vanderbilt. The Jackets blew a late lead on the road against Indiana before being throttled by Vandy. The defense has been atrocious, giving up 1.09 points per possession and ranking outside the top 200 in nearly every meaningful category.
Virginia Tech (3-3): beat North Carolina-Ashville, lost to Penn State. It's a growing year with four freshmen in the top six. Jeff Allen has been a force and Hank Thorns and Malcolm Delaney have both shown some signs in the backcourt. It seems to be a recurring theme, but once again, the defense is not good on this team right now. The offense is not much better for a team that never takes a trip to the line.
Wake Forest (5-1): beat Iowa, South Carolina-Upstate, lost to Charlotte. The Deacs' offense was disastrous in the win over Iowa and the loss to Charlotte, piling up just 119 points in 145 possessions over the two games. If they couldn't rebound on the offensive glass as well as they do, it would be an even longer season.
Maryland goes down in BB&T again
It's an annual rite of passage for Maryland basketball these days. Every season in early December the team travels to D.C. to play in the BB&T Classic, and every season they come away with a disappointing result. After losses to George Washington and Notre Dame in the past two seasons, the Verizon Center was once again unkind. This time the result was a loss to Virginia Commonwealth to fall to 2-7 in the event over the past five years.
Maryland played what was - by far - its worse defensive game of the season, allowing better than 1.11 points per possession. The Terrapin backcourt was torched in both halves by their VCU counterparts, first by Jamal Shuler and then by '07 NCAA Tournament hero Eric Maynor. Maryland went to its little used zone defense which the Rams effectively busted with threes, shooting 6 of 10 in the first half. After switching back to the man-to-man, Maynor - who didn't have a field goal in the first half - put 23 points on the board to help VCU pull away from a tie game at halftime.
Greivis Vasquez and James Gist once again had a subpar game, combining to shoot 7-24 from the field with 8 turnovers. Boom Osby was the star of the game for the losing team, scoring 17 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Cliff Tucker continued to put together a case for more playing time, scoring 14 points to go with 7 rebounds and 2 assists in just 14 minutes.
The team's next opponent will be a local one, as Morgan State comes to the Comcast Center for the first time ever. The two teams last played in 1994 with the Joe Smith-led Terrapins rolling to a 138-80 win in Cole Field House.
Maryland played what was - by far - its worse defensive game of the season, allowing better than 1.11 points per possession. The Terrapin backcourt was torched in both halves by their VCU counterparts, first by Jamal Shuler and then by '07 NCAA Tournament hero Eric Maynor. Maryland went to its little used zone defense which the Rams effectively busted with threes, shooting 6 of 10 in the first half. After switching back to the man-to-man, Maynor - who didn't have a field goal in the first half - put 23 points on the board to help VCU pull away from a tie game at halftime.
Greivis Vasquez and James Gist once again had a subpar game, combining to shoot 7-24 from the field with 8 turnovers. Boom Osby was the star of the game for the losing team, scoring 17 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Cliff Tucker continued to put together a case for more playing time, scoring 14 points to go with 7 rebounds and 2 assists in just 14 minutes.
The team's next opponent will be a local one, as Morgan State comes to the Comcast Center for the first time ever. The two teams last played in 1994 with the Joe Smith-led Terrapins rolling to a 138-80 win in Cole Field House.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Wrapping up the tournaments
Thanksgiving week is long over and so are most of the early season exempt tournaments. These events are often resume builders for March (see Butler in the 2006 NIT Season Tipoff) so let's look at the winners of each event a little bit more.
NIT Season Tipoff - Texas A&M. I expected the Aggies to take a bit of a step back after losing star Acie Law, but they impressed with big wins in New York over Washington and Ohio State. While super freshman DeAndre Jordan has been super on the boards (14.4 per 40 mins) and from the field (83.3 FG%) upperclassmen Josh Carter, Joseph Jones and Dominique Kirk are the leading scorers. This team is still playing stifling defense so expect to see them in March.
Maui Invitational - Duke. I was one who thought that the Blue Devils might have been a bit overrated with people putting them in their preseason top 10. It's still early, but any top 10 wouldn't be credible without having Duke present at this point. Coach K has his team running more than it did last year, back to Duke basketball. Kyle Singler lived up to his hype in winning the tournament MVP, and if Coach K finally decides to take advantage of his depth this team will be dangerous.
College Basketball Experience Classic - UCLA. When you're a preseason #2, you're expected to win big games early in the season. When you're without two of your top guards, that will hardly be taken into consideration by media and fans. Darren Collison and Michael Roll were missed, but the Bruins still handled Maryland and beat a good Michigan State team in the finals. Another star freshman - this time Kevin Love - has paced the team by averaging a double-double through 7 games. By the way, this team still plays some great defense. Imagine that coming from a Ben Howland coached team.
Great Alaska Shootout - Butler. I don't have to like Butler. And after beating Maryland last March, I'm not going to do it. What you must do, however, is give them their due as a legitimate top 25 team. The Bulldogs win games with a simple formula - slow the tempo, protect the rock like the Hope Diamond, and take lots of threes. Butler doesn't have much size which shows up in their defense and rebounding, but that deadly efficient offense is enough to beat a team when it's running smoothly. Wins over Virginia Tech and Texas Tech in the final two rounds aren't landmark wins, especially compared to what the team did last season, but they are strong wins for Butler early in the year.
Old Spice Classic - North Carolina State. The Pack didn't make it easy with late wins over South Carolina and Villanova in their last two games, but freshman JJ Hickson led them to victory in the second edition of the Orlando based event. NC State has no experience at point guard so expect some growing pains - turnovers have been a problem so far. The talent is there to finish high in the ACC.
US Virgin Islands Paradise Jam - Baylor. The Bears have not been good in a long time. The program is coming off of one of the worst scandals of all-time and has won as many as 6 Big XII games just once this decade. Scott Drew is seeking to change that, and he has laid the groundwork with solid recruiting classes including freshman Lacedarius Dunn and sophomore Demond Carter, both out of Louisiana. Wins over Wichita State, Notre Dame and Winthrop, all recent NCAA Tournament teams is cause for celebration for a team that has beat just one tournament team in the last four seasons. In all liklihood Baylor is still a season or two away from truly competing in the Big XII, but an NIT berth may be in the cards.
Anaheim Classic - USC. Lose to Mercer by double digits on your home court to open the season and you have to prove you deserved that top 25 preseason ranking. The Trojans didn't quite do that in Anaheim, but their championship game thrashing of Southern Illinois showed their potential. The top seven in minutes for USC are all either freshman or sophomore. Star freshman OJ Mayo (59.2 eFG%, 21.8 ppg) has been an offensive force early on despite taking terrible care of the ball, turning it over 4.7 times per game.
South Padre Island Invitational - Vanderbilt. Andrew Ogilvy is the best freshman that no one is hyping. He's an international player that hails from Australia so right now Fran Fraschilla might be the only analyst at the Worldwide Leader that knows who he is, but if he continues to make two-thirds of his shots that will change quickly. Losing Derrick Byars hurts this team, but they can still get back to level they were at last season with Shan Foster and Ogilvy leading the charge.
Puerto Rico Tipoff Classic - Miami. The Hurricanes are still number one in Ken Pomeroy's version of the RPI. Early wins over Marist, VCU and Providence are all solid for this team though they did struggle with Morgan State and Alabama State after returning from the island (albeit without Jack McClinton). McClinton is the star and a returning All-ACC player, but he will need to be even better this season for Miami to contend in the ACC.
Chicago Invitational Challenge - Xavier. This one was most notable for the Musketeers' rout of then-top 10 Indiana. Xavier went to the tournament last season and came excruciatingly close to upending Ohio State. Now with four seniors in their top six, Xavier is the clear favorite in the Atlantic Ten and should make a return trip to the Big Dance.
Las Vegas Invitational - North Carolina. Louisville losing in the semifinals of the championship round took away the made-for-TV top 10 matchup with North Carolina. The Tar Heels didn't roll in the finals, though, fighting off a feisty BYU team deep into the second half. The story early for the Heels is that they look like a top 5 team. No surprise there. UNC has played well offensively and defensively and shows little weakness in its component numbers with only their opponents eFG% (107th) ranking outside the nation's top 100. Watch out for their game against Kentucky at Rupp Arena where they will likely be without Tywon Lawson.
Legends Classic - Texas. In yet another new event, the Longhorns ran Tennessee out of the building in the finals. They're still an offensive force, even without Kevin Durant, but the defense would still seem to need some tweaks, at least in the early going.
NIT Season Tipoff - Texas A&M. I expected the Aggies to take a bit of a step back after losing star Acie Law, but they impressed with big wins in New York over Washington and Ohio State. While super freshman DeAndre Jordan has been super on the boards (14.4 per 40 mins) and from the field (83.3 FG%) upperclassmen Josh Carter, Joseph Jones and Dominique Kirk are the leading scorers. This team is still playing stifling defense so expect to see them in March.
Maui Invitational - Duke. I was one who thought that the Blue Devils might have been a bit overrated with people putting them in their preseason top 10. It's still early, but any top 10 wouldn't be credible without having Duke present at this point. Coach K has his team running more than it did last year, back to Duke basketball. Kyle Singler lived up to his hype in winning the tournament MVP, and if Coach K finally decides to take advantage of his depth this team will be dangerous.
College Basketball Experience Classic - UCLA. When you're a preseason #2, you're expected to win big games early in the season. When you're without two of your top guards, that will hardly be taken into consideration by media and fans. Darren Collison and Michael Roll were missed, but the Bruins still handled Maryland and beat a good Michigan State team in the finals. Another star freshman - this time Kevin Love - has paced the team by averaging a double-double through 7 games. By the way, this team still plays some great defense. Imagine that coming from a Ben Howland coached team.
Great Alaska Shootout - Butler. I don't have to like Butler. And after beating Maryland last March, I'm not going to do it. What you must do, however, is give them their due as a legitimate top 25 team. The Bulldogs win games with a simple formula - slow the tempo, protect the rock like the Hope Diamond, and take lots of threes. Butler doesn't have much size which shows up in their defense and rebounding, but that deadly efficient offense is enough to beat a team when it's running smoothly. Wins over Virginia Tech and Texas Tech in the final two rounds aren't landmark wins, especially compared to what the team did last season, but they are strong wins for Butler early in the year.
Old Spice Classic - North Carolina State. The Pack didn't make it easy with late wins over South Carolina and Villanova in their last two games, but freshman JJ Hickson led them to victory in the second edition of the Orlando based event. NC State has no experience at point guard so expect some growing pains - turnovers have been a problem so far. The talent is there to finish high in the ACC.
US Virgin Islands Paradise Jam - Baylor. The Bears have not been good in a long time. The program is coming off of one of the worst scandals of all-time and has won as many as 6 Big XII games just once this decade. Scott Drew is seeking to change that, and he has laid the groundwork with solid recruiting classes including freshman Lacedarius Dunn and sophomore Demond Carter, both out of Louisiana. Wins over Wichita State, Notre Dame and Winthrop, all recent NCAA Tournament teams is cause for celebration for a team that has beat just one tournament team in the last four seasons. In all liklihood Baylor is still a season or two away from truly competing in the Big XII, but an NIT berth may be in the cards.
Anaheim Classic - USC. Lose to Mercer by double digits on your home court to open the season and you have to prove you deserved that top 25 preseason ranking. The Trojans didn't quite do that in Anaheim, but their championship game thrashing of Southern Illinois showed their potential. The top seven in minutes for USC are all either freshman or sophomore. Star freshman OJ Mayo (59.2 eFG%, 21.8 ppg) has been an offensive force early on despite taking terrible care of the ball, turning it over 4.7 times per game.
South Padre Island Invitational - Vanderbilt. Andrew Ogilvy is the best freshman that no one is hyping. He's an international player that hails from Australia so right now Fran Fraschilla might be the only analyst at the Worldwide Leader that knows who he is, but if he continues to make two-thirds of his shots that will change quickly. Losing Derrick Byars hurts this team, but they can still get back to level they were at last season with Shan Foster and Ogilvy leading the charge.
Puerto Rico Tipoff Classic - Miami. The Hurricanes are still number one in Ken Pomeroy's version of the RPI. Early wins over Marist, VCU and Providence are all solid for this team though they did struggle with Morgan State and Alabama State after returning from the island (albeit without Jack McClinton). McClinton is the star and a returning All-ACC player, but he will need to be even better this season for Miami to contend in the ACC.
Chicago Invitational Challenge - Xavier. This one was most notable for the Musketeers' rout of then-top 10 Indiana. Xavier went to the tournament last season and came excruciatingly close to upending Ohio State. Now with four seniors in their top six, Xavier is the clear favorite in the Atlantic Ten and should make a return trip to the Big Dance.
Las Vegas Invitational - North Carolina. Louisville losing in the semifinals of the championship round took away the made-for-TV top 10 matchup with North Carolina. The Tar Heels didn't roll in the finals, though, fighting off a feisty BYU team deep into the second half. The story early for the Heels is that they look like a top 5 team. No surprise there. UNC has played well offensively and defensively and shows little weakness in its component numbers with only their opponents eFG% (107th) ranking outside the nation's top 100. Watch out for their game against Kentucky at Rupp Arena where they will likely be without Tywon Lawson.
Legends Classic - Texas. In yet another new event, the Longhorns ran Tennessee out of the building in the finals. They're still an offensive force, even without Kevin Durant, but the defense would still seem to need some tweaks, at least in the early going.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Terps win, ACC rolls
The Terps put together their best game of the season on Wednesday night to beat Illinois, 69-61, at the Comcast Center. Maryland put together a 40 minute game on their way to the team's first big win of the young season.
The defense was again stifling, limiting Illinois to just 24 of 72 shooting from the field while keeping them off the free throw line in a game that saw a very low number of fouls called. On offense the team played well enough, scoring just under a point per possession against what should be a very strong defensive team. Maryland limited turnovers for the second straight game, giving up the ball just 12 times in an estimated 70 possessions.
Individually, Eric Hayes may have been the player of the game, scoring 16 points and hitting 4 three point shots, displaying a renewed shooting touch that carried over from the Lehigh game. Freshman center Braxton Dupree got his second consecutive start and made the most of it once again, scoring 10 points and grabbing 5 rebounds in just 18 minutes of action.
Cliff Tucker was the other freshman to have a breakout game, scoring 9 points and snaring 5 rebounds in just 12 minutes in relief of Landon Milbourne. Tucker showed more assertiveness in the offense and also displayed previously unseen shooting skill on a few occasions. Milbourne again failed to get comfortable and make an impact on the game in his time, and it would seem that Tucker should soon push for more time.
Greivis Vasquez had another mixed bag of a game. The good was dishing 10 assists against just 2 turnovers, running the offense smoothly, and having 7 rebounds. The bad was an atrocious 2 for 14 shooting night that included another o-fer on seven shots from behind the arc. That puts him at an obscene 7-39 from deep through 7 games.
On the defensive end the Terps gave up a few open shots from the perimeter while letting Illinois get very little in the way of good looks close to the basket. No doubt the Illini are not the best of offensive teams, to put it kindly, but another stifling defensive effort (with a nice performance from an emerging Jerome Burney) leads one to believe that the defense may once again be very good.
In the shocker of the day, the ACC once again won the "challenge" with the Big Televen winning 8 of the 11 games over the past three days. At this point shouldn't the ACC be looking to more competitive series against the SEC or the Pac-Ten?
The defense was again stifling, limiting Illinois to just 24 of 72 shooting from the field while keeping them off the free throw line in a game that saw a very low number of fouls called. On offense the team played well enough, scoring just under a point per possession against what should be a very strong defensive team. Maryland limited turnovers for the second straight game, giving up the ball just 12 times in an estimated 70 possessions.
Individually, Eric Hayes may have been the player of the game, scoring 16 points and hitting 4 three point shots, displaying a renewed shooting touch that carried over from the Lehigh game. Freshman center Braxton Dupree got his second consecutive start and made the most of it once again, scoring 10 points and grabbing 5 rebounds in just 18 minutes of action.
Cliff Tucker was the other freshman to have a breakout game, scoring 9 points and snaring 5 rebounds in just 12 minutes in relief of Landon Milbourne. Tucker showed more assertiveness in the offense and also displayed previously unseen shooting skill on a few occasions. Milbourne again failed to get comfortable and make an impact on the game in his time, and it would seem that Tucker should soon push for more time.
Greivis Vasquez had another mixed bag of a game. The good was dishing 10 assists against just 2 turnovers, running the offense smoothly, and having 7 rebounds. The bad was an atrocious 2 for 14 shooting night that included another o-fer on seven shots from behind the arc. That puts him at an obscene 7-39 from deep through 7 games.
On the defensive end the Terps gave up a few open shots from the perimeter while letting Illinois get very little in the way of good looks close to the basket. No doubt the Illini are not the best of offensive teams, to put it kindly, but another stifling defensive effort (with a nice performance from an emerging Jerome Burney) leads one to believe that the defense may once again be very good.
In the shocker of the day, the ACC once again won the "challenge" with the Big Televen winning 8 of the 11 games over the past three days. At this point shouldn't the ACC be looking to more competitive series against the SEC or the Pac-Ten?
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