Testudo Times - Maryland vs. St. Francis game updatesSB Nation's award-winning Maryland Terrapins sitehttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/50025/testudo-fav.png2015-12-06T07:30:02-05:00http://www.testudotimes.com/rss/stream/96161432015-12-06T07:30:02-05:002015-12-06T07:30:02-05:00Photo gallery: Maryland vs. St. Francis
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<figcaption>Sammi Silber</figcaption>
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<p>Scenes from Xfinity Center – on the court and off – on Friday night.</p> <p>Well, what a game this was. I think this one ranks as one of the most fun games to photograph this year.</p>
<p>From the moment the ball tipped off, Maryland was ready to come back. They were ready to show that one loss would not define them and that they would rebound for the win. Getting started with a couple of baskets from Damonte Dodd and Jake Layman, the game moved fast.</p>
<p>I would like to give a shout out to Mark Turgeon. He is an amazing coach, obviously, but what a man. Once a player gets fouled, he replaces them and disciplines the players very well. Not only that, he is very close with them and truly cares about what they are saying and what they are doing. I see him squatting down, watching the game constantly. There's never a time where he's slacking off or not watching, but instead, he is always pushing his team.</p>
<p>Second, Diamond Stone was ON FIRE! After coming off the bench, let me tell you what happened. He walked onto the court, and before even getting ready for the play, clenched his fists, put on his signature game-face and jumped in complete enthusiasm. I had never seen a player that excited to play, and that's why I love Diamond Stone. He's my favorite athlete because he is always excited and ready to dominate. And he did just that, scoring 16 points throughout the game and a couple of amazing dunks.</p>
<p>Third, Melo Trimble was outstanding. Mark Turgeon said in the postgame conference that he is a very good player who does not necessarily need to be leading the team in points, but instead just wants to help the team win. With Trimble, there is "no ego there." And for such a talented athlete, he is humble, smart and dominant on the court. He didn't score practically at all, but Trimble's presence was continually helpful. '</p>
<p>Next is Ivan Bender. This was his first game in action for the Terrapins at Xfinity Center, and boy did he make it memorable. Especially on the last play of the game. He took the ball to the hoop and hung onto the rim for at least five seconds before coming back down. What play and what athleticism by Bender... I was speechless.</p>
<p>After that goes to DJ Durkin. Maryland's new head football coach was introduced during the first timeout of Friday's game. At halftime I happened to bump into him. I literally couldn't think of a better way to get his attention, so I said, "hey" to which he replied the same word. "Congratulations and good luck, man," I told him. "Thank you very much," he shook my hand, and then we parted ways. He struck me as class act and had just finished taking pictures with many of the fans at the game.</p>
<p>My last shoutout will go to the wonderful fans. As you saw, I am starting to hand out slips that tell you that your picture will be featured on our site in our photo galleries each game. Everyone I met was so excited and proud to be a Terps fan. So look for me on the court, guys!</p>
<p>Let's love the pictures.</p>
https://www.testudotimes.com/maryland-terrapins-basketball/2015/12/6/9856234/terps-photos-basketball-saint-francisSammi Silber2015-12-05T13:45:55-05:002015-12-05T13:45:55-05:00Here's what I think happened in Maryland's win
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<figcaption>Derik Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Maryland sure seems like it was a finely tuned machine on Friday night. You tell me how accurate that is. </p> <p>Between just us, here's a little secret: I didn't watch a second of Maryland's basketball game against St. Francis (Pa.?) on Friday night. I had a big exam on Saturday morning and, thus, watched Netflix and went to sleep early.</p>
<p>But what's cool about advanced statistics in basketball is they can paint - I think - a pretty reliable picture of how a game went. Specifically, the "<a href="http://www.rawbw.com/~deano/articles/20040601_roboscout.htm" data-ref-index="5">four factors</a>" that key team efficiency: effective field goal percentage (eFG%), turnover percentage (TOV%), offensive rebounding percentage (ORB%) and free throw attempts per field goal attempt (FT/FGA).</p>
<p>So let's try something: I'm going to say exactly what happened in the game, without looking at a single individual player's stat line. All I know is that Maryland <a href="http://www.testudotimes.com/2015/12/4/9851962/maryland-vs-st-francis-final-score-with-3-things-to-know-from-the">won by a lo</a>t and that my roommates told me Ivan Bender got some minutes. And you'll tell me if this aligns pretty well with what actually happened at Xfinity Center. Cool? Cool.</p>
<h5>Shooting</h5>
<p id="paragraph3"><b>Maryland: 77.2 eFG% / St. Francis: 35.5 eFG% / National average: 49.4 eFG%</b></p>
<p>Holy crabcakes! Maryland must have shot the lights out. A 77 percent eFG% is absolutely <i>ginormous</i>, and a 35.5 percent rate is, uh, not. It's virtually impossible not to win a game with that kind of shooting split between the teams. It must have been a lot of fun, huh?</p>
<h5>Turnovers</h5>
<p id="paragraph5"><b>Maryland: 14.5 TOV% / St. Francis: 15.8 TOV% / National average: 18.6 TOV%</b></p>
<p>This seems straightforward enough. Maryland didn't force many turnovers but also secured the ball pretty well, and it doesn't seem like anything <i>all that </i>frustrating could have happened here. Mark Turgeon was probably happy about it.</p>
<p id="paragraph6"><span><b>Offensive rebounding</b></span></p>
<p id="paragraph7"><b>Maryland: 23.5 ORB% / St. Francis 32.5 ORB% / National average: 30.5 ORB %</b></p>
<p>Well, it seems like Maryland didn't do a terrific job on the glass. That's sort of discouraging against a tiny NEC team, but then again: How much does it matter if you never miss on offense and never give up made shots on defense? I suppose this is a wash.</p>
<p id="paragraph8"><span><b>Free throw attempts</b></span></p>
<p id="paragraph9"><b>Maryland: 0.543 FT/FGA / St. Francis 0.177 FT/FGA / National average: 0.373 FT/FGA</b></p>
<p>Oh, heavens. Melo Trimble must have spent, like, 45 minutes on the free throw line. But, wait: I was told he barely even played? It looks like Maryland got fouled on half its shots from the field and just lived on the line. That's a hallmark of a dominating performance. This <i>must </i>have been Maryland's best game of the season.</p>
<p>So, you tell me: Was this really how it was?</p>
<p id="paragraph11"><i>For a detailed accounting of Maryland's advanced-stats efforts in every game so far, go <a href="http://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/maryland/2016-gamelogs.html" data-ref-index="6">here</a>.</i></p>
https://www.testudotimes.com/maryland-terrapins-basketball/2015/12/5/9854354/terps-st-francis-stats-game-final-score-2015Alex Kirshner2015-12-05T07:00:02-05:002015-12-05T07:00:02-05:00Layman showed up against St. Francis
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<figcaption>Derik Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>After going quiet for a few games, Layman scored with ease Friday night.</p> <p>As a senior and one of Maryland's star players, forward Jake Layman was disappointed in himself after only coming up with 4 points on one field goal against North Carolina.</p>
<p>"After the UNC game, I looked in the mirror and kind of said, 'I need to be better,'" Layman said after <a href="http://www.testudotimes.com/2015/12/4/9851962/maryland-vs-st-francis-final-score-with-3-things-to-know-from-the" target="_blank">Maryland's win over St. Francis Friday night</a>. "I need to play better for this team to win, and I think tonight was the first step in the right direction."</p>
<p>Layman finished Friday's game with 16 points, the most he's had since Maryland's season-opener against Mount St. Mary's. After scoring in double digits in each of Maryland's first four games this season, he hit a bit of a snag offensively coming into Friday night. The forward hadn't scored 10 points in the three games since, and was only averaging three shots per game.</p>
<p>"It wasn't just North Carolina, it was a couple games in a row there," Layman said. "Everyone goes through cycles like that where you don't play well for a couple of games"</p>
<p>He came in only shooting 29 percent from three-point range this season, and had missed his last six attempts from deep, so Mark Turgeon called a play for Layman on Maryland's first possession. The forward took a pass from Rasheed Sulaimon and easily drove past his man for an easy lay-in.</p>
<p>"I love that he took a layup instead of a jump shot," Turgeon said."We talked about getting to the basket and getting fouled early in the game to try to get himself going. I thought our guys are mature enough and understand how important Jake is to us to get him going early."</p>
<p>Layman didn't stop there, netting two three-pointers in the next five minutes and scoring eight of the team's first 16 points. He doubled his season-high in made threes with 4, but brushed off talk that he's been shooting the ball any differently.</p>
<p>"I think I've been shooting the ball the same way," Layman said. "I think everyone goes through cycles of missed shots like that, but as a shooter you just have to keep shooting no matter what."</p>
<p>Now it is important to put this performance in perspective, because Maryland's opponent, St. Francis, simply isn't built to match up with the No. 2 team in the nation. The Red Flash don't have the size to take Layman on offense, and Maryland's ball movement left them out of place all game. That said, 4-for-5 shooting is impressive no matter how you slice it.</p>
<p>While Layman's had a tough time shooting the ball this season, he's been able to contribute on defense. With so many options on offense for the Terps, Layman isn't going to need to be the hot shooter every night.</p>
<p>"I look at myself as an important piece of this team, not just scoring-wise, but defensively too," he said.</p>
<p>Maryland guard Jaylen Brantley played on an AAU team with Layman when they were high-schoolers in Massachusetts. He said the team all texted him after the North Carolina game to keep his confidence up.</p>
<p>"Getting his confidence back is going to be big," Brantley said. "We're going to need him throughout the whole season."</p>
https://www.testudotimes.com/maryland-terrapins-basketball/2015/12/5/9852292/terps-jake-layman-stats-final-score-2015-ncaa-st-francisRyan Connors2015-12-04T23:25:03-05:002015-12-04T23:25:03-05:00Bender impresses in first career minutes
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<figcaption>Derik Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Maryland's lesser-known European big man threw down a sweet dunk in his first collegiate playing time against St. Francis.</p> <p>Maryland freshman Ivan Bender joined the team halfway through last season, but he didn't play in a game due to a myriad of problems. The team's forward depth and Bender's general unfamiliarity with the team, not to mention his continued rehabbing from an ACL tear, prevented him from seeing the floor at all.</p>
<p>Bender was relegated to the bench once again this year after he was <a href="http://www.testudotimes.com/2015/11/24/9796250/maryland-forward-ivan-bender-did-not-travel-to-cancun-due-to">ruled ineligible for the first six games of this season</a>. His wait ended Friday night.</p>
<p>Leading 83-53 with 3:52 left against St. Francis, Mark Turgeon introduced Bender to College Park. His first steps onto the court went generally unnoticed, as the PA announcer missed the substitution. He only mentioned Varun Ram and Damonte Dodd's re-entries, but after a stellar performance in this brief appearance, Bender may never get overlooked again.</p>
<p>Bender tallied 5 points and 6 rebounds in his brief appearance, nailing three of four free throw attempts and slamming home an emphatic closing dunk.</p>
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<p>"For his first time on the floor I thought he acted really mature," said Turgeon. "He showed great poise. Six rebounds in 4 minutes, that's 60 rebounds in a 40 minute game."</p>
<p>The eye-opening performance is sure to stick in the back of Turgeon's mind as the season wears on, and Bender's teammates (including fellow european big man Michal Cekovsky) seemed thrilled to see him get on the highlight reel the first time he saw the court.</p>
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<p>"Ivan was amazing," said teammate Robert Carter. "You've got to imagine how tough it is on coach to watch that tonight. Six rebounds in 4 minutes and think that you can't give him too many minutes. Coach is already trying to shuffle around four big guys."</p>
<p>Maryland is poised to lose as many as three of its frontcourt players to the 2016 NBA Draft, so Bender will be in a much better position to get playing time next season. This brief stint should be enough to have Maryland fans optimistic about what he can bring to the team in the future.</p>
https://www.testudotimes.com/maryland-terrapins-basketball/2015/12/4/9852642/terps-stats-final-score-2015-ivan-benderMatt Ellentuck2015-12-04T22:15:24-05:002015-12-04T22:15:24-05:00Rasheed Sulaimon made this kid's day after ruining St. Francis's<p>Always passing it on. A bonus assist from Sheed. #TerpFam pic.twitter.com/lm2dO6f4cQ— Maryland Basketball (@TerrapinHoops) December 5, 2015</p>
<div class="source source-img"><p><p>As he does after most Maryland home games, Rasheed Sulaimon spent time shooting around with a little Terps fan.</p></p></div>
https://www.testudotimes.com/2015/12/4/9852714/rasheed-sulaimon-made-this-kids-day-after-ruining-st-francissMatt Ellentuck2015-12-04T20:55:51-05:002015-12-04T20:55:51-05:00Maryland dominates St. Francis
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<figcaption>Derik Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The Terps coasted to their easiest win of the season a game after suffering their first loss.</p> <p>Maryland remained perfect at home with a blowout 96-to-55 win Friday over St. Francis, which saw minutes from all 14 active players on its roster. Robert Carter's near triple-double with 20 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds and Jake Layman's 16 points on 5-of-7 shooting led the Terrapins to a comfortable win at home.</p>
<p>Maryland returned home bloodthirsty after its first loss of the season at North Carolina, dominating the Red Flash from the beginning.</p>
<p>The Terrapins went up by double digits less than four minutes into the game, thanks to 5 points from Jake Layman, a pair of inside shots from Damonte Dodd and four free throws from Robert Carter.</p>
<p>Layman never cooled off, shooting perfect from the floor in the first half, connecting on all three of his 3-points tries, the most he's made in an entire game this season.</p>
<p>Stellar team defense contributed to Maryland's 45-24 halftime lead. The Terrapins forced 8 turnovers, coming away with 5 steals and two blocks.</p>
<p>The game was decided pretty quickly, but things got heated for a moment after Rasheed Sulaimon hit a step-back three over Greg Brown to put the Terps up 19-6. Players exchanged words in front of the referee resulting in a double-technical foul. Sulaimon then lightened the vibe at Xfinity Center, drawing a charge on the next possession.</p>
<p>Maryland coasted into the second half, with its lead allowing for the bottom of coach Mark Turgeon's rotation and bench to find some minutes.</p>
<p>The Red Flash shot 30 percent from the field on the game, making Maryland's unreal 67 percent unnecessary.</p>
<p>Energy levels remained high at Xfinity Center though, as Michal Cekovsky opened the second half aggressive, scoring 5 straight points, including an and-1.</p>
<p>Freshman Ivan Bender saw his first collegiate minutes after being suspended for the Terrapins first 6 games of the season for eligibility reasons. He and classmate Kent Auslander scored their first points of their careers.</p>
<p>It was an easy recovery game for Maryland before the team heads to Madison Square Garden on Tuesday to take on the Connecticut Huskies in the Jimmy V Classic.</p>
<h4>Three things to know:</h4>
<p><b>1. Jake Layman broke out of his shooting slump. </b>The senior opened with the game's first basket, and finished the half with 11 points on perfect 4-of-4 shooting. He finished the game with 16 points on 5-7 shooting including four 3-point makes. He'd scored less than 10 points in each of the Terrapin last three outings. Getting Layman back into his comfort zone offensively is key to a more balanced box score than the one Maryland had against North Carolina.</p>
<p><b>2. Jaylen Brantley got more playing time in the blowout. </b>Turgeon mentioned the need to find more guard depth, mainly alluding to Brantley, after Sulaimon and Trimble each played more than 35 minutes against North Carolina. Brantley hit his stride late in the first half, hitting his first made field goal attempt and his first 3-point make. He finished with 7 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist in 15 minutes off the bench.<b> </b>Finding more rest time for Trimble in the regular season will mean a lot come March.</p>
<p><b>3. Maryland blew out a weaker opponent it should have blown out. </b>The Red Storm have a loss to Kent State, a double-digit loss to Maryland Eastern-Shore and a 31-point loss at Notre Dame. Maryland ran away with this one in a 41-point dominating win. This was a cupcake, and was perfectly scheduled to follow the battle between top-10 teams at the Dean Dome on Tuesday.</p>
https://www.testudotimes.com/2015/12/4/9851962/maryland-vs-st-francis-final-score-with-3-things-to-know-from-theMatt Ellentuck2015-12-04T18:41:10-05:002015-12-04T18:41:10-05:00Maryland-St. Francis GameThread
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<figcaption>Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The Terps look to rebound after their loss to North Carolina</p> <p>Maryland basketball suffered its first first loss of the season Tuesday to North Carolina. On Friday night, the team has a chance to get back in the win column. The No. 2 (for now) Terrapins have an easier matchup this time around, taking on the St. Francis Red Flash at 7 p.m.</p>
<p>The game will be televised on the Big Ten Network, and you can expect new Maryland head football coach DJ Durkin to make an appearance at some point tonight.</p>
<p>Maryland shouldn't have too much trouble with St. Francis, a team that's lost to Maryland Eastern Shore and Kent State. The Red Flash are 274th in KenPom's adjusted offensive efficiency, while the Terps rank 14th in that category. KenPom also give the Terps a 97 percent chance victory in this one.</p>
<p>The Terps will be looking for a bounce-back win after losing to the Tar Heels, and it's hard to see them not getting one tonight.</p>
<p>Share your predictions and comments below.</p>
https://www.testudotimes.com/2015/12/4/9851970/gamethread-maryland-vs-st-francisRyan Connors2015-12-04T06:00:01-05:002015-12-04T06:00:01-05:00How to watch Maryland vs. St. Francis
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<p>The Terps return to the friendly confines of Xfinity Center as non-conference play keeps moving. </p> <p>The No. 2 Maryland men's basketball team looks to rebound from its first loss of the season on Tuesday in what should be a far easier contest. The Terps host St. Francis (Pa.) at Xfinity Center in a Big Ten vs. NEC clash.</p>
<p>Our game preview is <a href="http://www.testudotimes.com/maryland-terrapins-basketball/2015/12/3/9838386/maryland-st-francis-basketball-game-preview-2015-tv">here</a>. The gist? Maryland should win going away, against a really small team that has a hard time scoring and doesn't often compete against teams of Maryland's caliber. College basketball analytics powerhouse Ken Pomeroy gives Maryland a 97 percent chance to win, and that sounds about right.</p>
<p>Here's everything you need to know:</p>
<h4><span>The numbers:</span></h4>
<p id="paragraph4">No. 2 Maryland (6-1, 0-0 Big Ten)</p>
<p id="paragraph5">St. Francis (Pa.) (3-3, 0-0 Northeast Conference)</p>
<p id="paragraph6"><b>All-time series</b>: Maryland is 1-0.</p>
<h4>How to watch:</h4>
<p id="paragraph7">Dec. 4, 7 p.m. (EST)</p>
<p id="paragraph8"><b>TV</b>: Big Ten Network – Kevin Kugler (Play-by-Play), Dan Bonner (Analyst)</p>
<p id="paragraph9"><b>Stream</b>: <a href="http://btn2go.com">BTN2Go</a> (cable login required)</p>
<p><b>Radio</b>: <a href="http://www.umterps.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=209285486" data-ref-index="10">Maryland Sports Radio Network</a>. Johnny Holliday (Play-By-Play), Chris Knoche (Analyst) - SiriusXM Channel 134/195 , ESPN 980 AM, 105.7 FM, <a href="https://rabble.tv/station/wmuc/profile">WMUC Sports</a></p>
<h4>Odds:</h4>
<p><a href="http://www.oddsshark.com/ncaab/odds">Maryland is a 25-point favorite.</a></p>
https://www.testudotimes.com/maryland-terrapins-basketball/2015/12/4/9847166/how-to-watch-maryland-saint-francis-pa-channel-game-time-stream-btnAlex Kirshner