Friendly Reminder: Maryland Basketball Plays Again Tomorrow

by Ben Broman on Dec 21, 2009 10:48 AM EST in Basketball Comment 15 comments

Maryland's Adrian Bowie (22) loses control of the ball while being guarded by Eastern Kentucky's Joshua Jones, right, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Dec. 12, 2009, in College Park, Md. (AP Photo/Rob Carr)

Rob Carr - AP

3 months ago: Maryland's Adrian Bowie (22) loses control of the ball while being guarded by Eastern Kentucky's Joshua Jones, right, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Dec. 12, 2009, in College Park, Md. (AP Photo/Rob Carr)

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Shaken off the snow? Fully recovered from a great weekend of basketball and snow fights? Forget Maryland basketball existed? That's understandable, considering the Terps haven't played in ten days. They'll be back on the court tomorrow, though, taking on the 2-6 Winston-Salem State Rams. That means its time to get back in basketball-watching mode.

My original write-up on the Rams wasn't exactly complimentary, and nothing has changed since. This team is not a good one, and Maryland should win with ease. In the WaPo, WSS's coach described them as "opportunistic", and Maryland will have to provide plenty of opportunities for them to have any shot.

As a quick reminder, WSS's best player is senior guard Brian Fisher, their leader in scoring and assists. The other player to watch out for is Shelton Carter, a junior 6-5 forward who will probably match up with Sean Mosley. He has the ability to score more than Fisher, but is generally more inconsistent.

I'm fully expecting an easy win, though the score might not get too out of hand until late. Don't be surprised if David Pearman and Ersin Levent crack five or ten minutes of PT, and Steve Goins might be right there with them.

As for a random prediction, I'm feeling Jin Soo Choi tomorrow. I'm calling a made three and a block, for no other reason than he'll be seeing lots of playing time and has to score eventually.

Final prediction: Maryland 78, WSS 59. Couldn't break 20.

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I would be very surprised...

If this game is as close as your prediction. WSS is by far the worst team we will play this year, and their style seems to be a favorable matchup for us. I agree that the bench players may see a lot of PT — and actually I could see Tucker having a big game — but even if Levent and Pearman play 5 minutes plus, I doubt we win by anything less than 25 points.

by jellisjenius on Dec 21, 2009 11:48 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

thats what we said about morgan state

look how that turned out

by aMo on Dec 21, 2009 2:03 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Nonsense...

Morgan State was a very respectable team last year – a tournament team, the best in their conference and a local rival, in a sense. They were nowhere close to as bad as WSS, who is literally one of the worst 5-10 teams in D1. This team is substantially worse than Charleston Southern, for example.

Where do people get stuff like this? Do you assume that every non-BCS team is equally bad or mediocre?

by jellisjenius on Dec 21, 2009 6:02 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

We will be rusty

Having a long break and being snowed for a couple days means the players could be rusty and start out a little slow but having said that I think we get a big lead and have the opportunity to sit the starters so our backups get some valuable minutes.

by Terp80 on Dec 21, 2009 11:51 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Jin Soo Choi

I predict that “The Donger” will drop a triple single (Points, Rebounds, Assists).

by stayon12 on Dec 21, 2009 1:06 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Gonna win this game

88 – 64

Is Jerry Angelo fired yet?

by ES46NE10 on Dec 21, 2009 1:22 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Speaking of Choi

This is sort of an unrelated tangent, but I am wondering how Choi got a scholarship spot. I guess its because theoretically he is quick for a big guy, and he can shoot, and that leads to mismatches. But on the other hand he is weak in the post—his skill level seems to be so much lower than the rest of the team. Is there some potential that I am just missing?

by GoTerpsBaby on Dec 21, 2009 1:25 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Shooting and potential

His real strength was shooting. He was rumored to have an unbelievable stroke. 19 straights 3s or something like that. He was supposed to be a big SF with a killer stroke.

Didn’t work out that way.

by Ben Broman on Dec 21, 2009 2:57 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Last time I checked...

Choi’s MD career isn’t quite over yet. But Ben’s right about why he was recruited. I don’t think it was a rumor, either…GW has said as much about him.

I’m a little disappointed that he doesn’t seem to have improved much from last season, but I still see a lot of potential there. It has nothing to do with skill level – it has to do with physical strength and (apparently with shooting) nerves.

by jellisjenius on Dec 21, 2009 5:53 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

JJ, I basically agree with you. Jin Soo does have a lot of potential. I don't know about shooting nerves.

He seems to have a good bball IQ and he hustles on both offense and defense. However, he is in no-man’s land right now on this team. He doesn’t handle the ball nor cannot create his own shot well enough to play the perimeter. As you said, he isn’t big enough to go inside. He is one guy that would have benefitted from a prep school year, preferably one near a Burger King.

As to our game with the Rams, we still have big questions about our team. Can Dino score in our half court offense or can Dino and Landon rebound effectively against bigger frontlines. I would like to see us improve our inside game but we are not going to get answers to questions playing the Rams. I think we are goint to up the tempo like we typically do against the non-conference teams.

by wmterp on Dec 21, 2009 7:21 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Good points...

But if Choi somehow gains bulk and strength enough to play the 4, he could be selective with his outside shooting and his difficulty creating shots off the dribble wouldn’t be as big a problem. He can also work on his handle, at least enough to improve his ability to score off the dribble.

I agree about tonight’s game – I always enjoy watching games, but it seems unlikely we’ll learn much about our team. Probably the biggest thing I’ll be looking for is how Gary handles the frontcourt rotation. If Padgett doesn’t get significant minutes in this probable rout, we will probably know not to expect many minutes from him in ACC play. And the rebounding as well – as you pointed out. It would be nice to see signs that they have worked hard on improving their positioning for rebounds, even if that doesn’t translate as well to games vs Georgia Tech, UNC, and other big/talented front lines.

by jellisjenius on Dec 22, 2009 1:14 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

md w.s.

first unlikely goins will play due do…..injured for a change. something you completely overlooked….winston salem rams once coached for 47 years by clarence big house gaines. 18 20 win seasons 842 wins. earl monroe ave 41.5 his senior yr at w.s. leading the rams to the ncaa division championship in 1967 and he was player of the year.

by fkterp on Dec 22, 2009 9:45 AM EST reply actions 0 recs