Okay folks, we're done with the Edsall talk for the time being. Why? Because basketball is on the horizon. Almost.
It's really not here yet, but there's only one more warm-up game before the huge road game against Duke. Unfortunately, that one warm-up game is against Colgate, which isn't exactly easy to get excited about. The Raiders aren't exactly a loaded opponent here. Need proof? They're currently 1-11, with the lone win coming on Sunday against Longwood. They lost to Duke by 52 and Syracuse by 57. KenPom has them at 327th, which makes them one of the bottom 20 or so teams in the country.
So yeah, for the third straight game (and the fourth of the last five) my preview is basically consisting of "This is a far inferior team, and one that Maryland should beat without any trouble." Sorry about that.
There is some good news here: this game is on TV. When the Terrapins play the Raiders at 8:00 tomorrow, CSN will have it for the locals. That's a victory any way you look at it in my book.
To go a little deeper, Colgate isn't a complete loss. For one, Jordan Williams will finally be countered by some height, even if not a lot of it. While Colgate's strength is certainly in its guard play, there is some length on the squad, mostly from 6-10 junior center Nick Pascale. He receives minimal minutes, but he does start. And even though he doesn't put up crazy numbers - 6 and 6 a game - the height is a nice refresher after getting short cupcake after short cupcake.
The two guards to know are Joe Hoban and Yaw Gyawu. Hoban's a 6-1 senior and is averaging 9 points and 3.3 assists per game while essentially serving as Colgate's point guard. Gyawu, a 6-5 junior, is Colgate's leading scorer. He's not an outside threat - he's only taken 2 three-pointers on the year - but he's good around the rim and can put up points in a hurry.
Speaking of three-point shooters: luckily for Maryland, Colgate doesn't have many. Their 3pt% is one of the worst in the country.
So, in summation, this an inferior team, and one that Maryland should beat without any trouble. Everything at this point is still building to the showdown with Duke on the 9th.