Maryland Minute 4.3.13: Postmortem

Primarily basketball-driven MM today, as you might imagine, with a little bit of football and housekeeping at the bottom.

Postgame quotes from Iowa
Interesting to read why the guys think they took a step backwards in this one. And I have to say I actually buy their responses as real reasons, not excuses: they've played one game in 13 days, which made them rusty, and they had to limp home with a bunch of injuries - not just to Seth Allen, but also to Dez, who has a bruised knee and some ankle issues, Padge, and Logan himself. That, at least says Turge, is why they were so out of rhythm, and it does make some sense.

And a note on Dez, too, that's applicable to the entire team: "He'll learn from it."

"It was amazing we kept it as close as we did"
Not wrong there, either. Of course, not in the "we did well to keep it close" sense, but in the "when you miss a bunch of free throws and layups and open jumpers against a good team, you're not supposed to have a shot in the final minutes" sense. I have no idea how the game was a two-possession one in the final minutes a few times; even then it felt like Iowa was up by double-digits.

Len's future: "We're going to do what's best for Alex"
A very Caliparian response from Turgeon there. Which makes sense, given how much Turge looks up to Cal. Difference is, Cal can afford to tell a guy like Archie Goodwin "No, you go pro and do what's best for you and your family" because he has the Harrison twins and Julius Randle and James Young coming in behind him. Maryland with a Len replacement? Uh, given that Shaquille Cleare has averaged 6 minutes per game over the last seven and is the only center on the roster, not so much. But I won't be sad to see Turgeon run a Cal-esque "players first" program - we saw how coming back can backfire for a guy with John Gilchrist and Terrence Morris, and if he's

If Alex goes, have to think Maryland goes looking for a ready-made, impact big man.

Essence Townsend and Alex Len are awesome
Adorable. (And as a few people have mentioned before, hey, she's in College Park another year, right? People have done crazy things for love.)

Terps signee Damonte Dodd had 'an unbelievable year' at prep school
Apparently averaged 14 points, 8 boards, and 4 blocks a game, against pretty decent competition. As expected, he's become more polished in that time, and thankfully per his coach is a slimmer, more athletic type than Shaq or Chuck. Still think he'll be the fourth big off the bench to start things off next year, though, and isn't going to be making up for any Olexiy-sized hole.

Live scrimmage offers unfamiliar experience for Terps QB Ricardo Young
You really had to expect Ricardo to struggle initially with consistency and rust - it's been years since he's actually played in a game. A scrimmage at Dunbar isn't going to turn on a light for him, but the more he gets in those situations, the more developed he'l be mentally. But he had a chance to take hold of the starting job, and it doesn't sound like he's taking it.

Official: Maryland, UConn to meet in Barclays game
And it'll be the opener for both teams. As a reminder, the last time these two met, Maryland won a national title a few weeks later.

McMillen to be Inducted into Hall of Fame
Good for Tom. Hope he stops complaining about the Big Ten now.