Jordan Williams Leads Maryland to NCAA Tournament Win Over Houston, 89-77
by Ben Broman on Mar 20, 2010 12:48 AM EDT
in Basketball
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PrintMaryland hasn't lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament in thirteen years. After beating the Houston Cougars 89-77 tonight in Spokane, the streak has been extended to fourteen.
Aubrey Coleman was as sensational as advertised and dropped 26, but his prolific output ultimately had a minimal impact on the game. Instead, it was Jordan Williams and Landon Milbourne that stepped up and led Maryland to another NCAA tournament first round victory. Williams was absolutely sensational against a weak Houston front line, leading Maryland with 21 points and 17 rebounds. Milbourne had another strong comeback game, showcasing renewed confidence with the mid-range jumper and in the post while dropping 19 points.
Greivis Vasquez was mostly quiet - by his standards; "just" 16 points - which was unexpected, and he failed to pass Len Bias on the Maryland all-time points leader lists, but he'll get another day to do it against Michigan State on Sunday at 2:40 EST.
Houston got plenty of help from officials; during the second half especially, they got to the line at will. Luckily for Maryland, though, free throw shooting is not a strength of the Coogs; they shot just 20-32 from the stripe. Meanwhile, Maryland dominated the boards (a huge 47-27 advantage) to overcome a turnover-heavy start and come away with the win.
The rebounding effort all around was encouraging, but it is important to remember that Houston is one of the worst rebounding teams in the country, so don't get too excited. Any way you slice Jordan Williams' performance, though, it was no less than spectacular. If there were any questions about his legitimacy as a monstrous big man, they have been answered.
The entire team performance was great, actually. Houston doesn't play much defense, so putting up 89 isn't as impressive as it might seem, but holding them to 77, on the other hand, is a bit of a feat. Maryland's slow start was somewhat expected given the time off, and that they were able to overcome it was exciting.
Maryland takes on Michigan State on Sunday, which at this point is tomorrow. I'll have the First Look in a few hours, and try to set up a quick Q&A if possible.
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Jordan needs to come up big on the boards again--
for us to have a good chance against MSU. Greivis needs to get hot.
Patrick Stevens was pretty spot-on with his predictions:
Props to Kenpom.com’s prediction 90-77. Sometimes hard stats are spot on
by kryptonianjorel on Mar 20, 2010 1:22 AM EDT reply actions
I've heard a couple reports that Vasquez didn't have a good game
but I thought that he was downright heady and a great floor general tonight (not something I would have thought I’d be saying about him earlier in his career). His perimeter shot wasn’t on but fortunately we didn’t need it. I really hope that we can get the three working as a team before sunday because I have a feeling that we’ll need it to beat MSU. If we don’t miss, we won’t have to worry about the rebounding battle (which, unfortunately, will not end up like it did tonight).
Doubt, indulged and cherished, is in danger of becoming denial; but if honest, and bent on thorough investigation, it may soon lead to full establishment of the truth.
-Ambrose Bierce
Greivis didn't play his usual game and didn't score that well, but he was impressive.
Guarding Coleman was an all consuming activity. Coleman was incredibly difficult to guard, even without all of the favorable calls he got from the refs. (Kobe and LeBron don’t get calls like that…was that crew from a mid-major conference?) Still, Coleman is tough and worth the price of a ticket. We didn’t made adjustments to help stop him by clogging the middle until the second half. In the first half, Greivis out was out there alone at the point of attack. It had to affect the rest of his game. So he found a way to contribute offensively by passing and controlling the tempo. It wasn’t pretty but it was a classic example of a great point guard finding a way to win.
By the way, the difficulty Sean had staying in front of Coleman is a good indication of how quick Coleman is. Sean moves his feet well enough to get charges on quick players. Coleman was getting by him.
Greivis
I think he realized he didn’t need to be dominant. Williams was clearly dominating the front court so he just tried to get other players involved and play good defense (in the 2nd half). Also, his presence on the court is great because he draws defenders to him which ultimately leaves someone else open. Greivis did a great job of “managing” the game, and keeping his emotions in check.
It’s so funny. When Vasquez doesn’t score 20+ he’s criticized for not playing well, yet he played the perfect game for a point guard, getting everybody involved in the offense and not turning the game into a duel with Coleman. Sixteen points, 7 boards, 6 assists, 2 turnovers. He played under control the entire game. while keeping Coleman from putting up 40.
After the first five minutes of the game, Maryland looked confident, effiicient and as well coached as any team I have seen thus far in the tournament. They are a better team when Vasquez plays like he did last night and are a threat to move beyond the Sweet 16.
As for JW, Maryland is going to win a title with this guy. His progress this year has been phenominal and he is arguably the best freshman in the country right now. Props to Gary Williams for the job he has done with the big man. If I’m a premier PF out there watching the tournament, I would want to play with Jordan Williams.
Let’s jump ahead. Maryland will beat MSU Sunday and then face Kansas. Of all the number 1 seeds (including Duke), Maryland matches up the best with Kansas. So while on paper this bracket looked incredibly unfair, I’d rather be playing the Jayhawls than Kentucky or Syracuse, two team that are far more athletic. Regardless, this Terps fan sees Maryland in the Elite 8.
We got capability
One game at a time, man
Leadership:
Doesn’t always consist of putting a team on your back and carrying them through the trenches….GV did exactly what UMD needed from him. He moved the ball around, he reset the offense when the sets weren’t panning out, he took shots when they were open(whether the fell or not he wasn’t taking many of those WTF! type shots we see a lot), and he played pretty aggressively on defense. He was SMART, PRODUCTIVE, and was a TEAM PLAYER.
Congrats to the boys! Hopefully it was a confidence builder for JWill because IMHO he’s about as important as GV, because if he’s having a productive night it eases the pressure on the shooters.
Greivis' unselfish play a key to victory
Yes, that’s exactly what the Terps had last night. There was a time in his career when Greivis seemed to be a “me first, team second” sort of player, who was frequently criticized for his selfishness.
Not anymore. This season he’s become more and more a team player, who will do what he needs to help; score 25 one game, dish out 14 assists the next or contributing all around to the win. Last night was a great example of all around play, where early on Greivis was more concerned at getting other players involved in the scoring flow, but picked it up more in the second half.
The Terps definitely had some rust in the first half (mostly in the first half of the first half), but that was to be expected after a week layoff. Sure, Vasquez showed some, too, but still managed 16 points and what he did all around. As Gary Williams said after the game: “Greivis tonight, if he would have shot better, he would have played an unbelievable game because he really got people involved and that’s the key. When’s really on his game, everybody’s a part of what we’re doing out there and he was a great leader tonight and he’s had a lot to do with the success of Jordan Williams….”
by Ken from Cincy on Mar 20, 2010 12:02 PM EDT reply actions
Observation
Greivis should know, and others too, that this type of player(s) is the one that wins championships, much more often than not. Basketball is a team game. Whatever it takes to end the game with more points than the opponent.
Like with Caps, Ovie, if he isn’t scoring goals, draws so much attention that other players get better opportunities.
NBA scouts will notice.
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