132 replies to this topic

[bnickle]

They better learn how to rebound and play defense or it'll be a long year. Disgusting effort defensively. Pathetic. It hasn't been good all year. ISU just missed open shot after open shot. ASU shot 50+ % from 3. VMI put up 50 in the first half.

[BSLZackKiesel]

They better learn how to rebound and play defense or it'll be a long year. Disgusting effort defensively. Pathetic. It hasn't been good all year. ISU just missed open shot after open shot. ASU shot 50+ % from 3. VMI put up 50 in the first half.

Way too many missed assignments underneath the basket. Cekovsky was the main culprit of those. He strays way too far out on the perimeter and is unable to get back in time. This team also has to learn how to pass out of a double-team. I can't count the number of times Virginia doubled one of our guards and he was unable to see the open man. And the free throw shooting, which has seemingly been an issue for 5, 6, 7 years...

[Mackus]

I know if I were on the committee I wouldn't have had much inclination to pay attention to MD before tonight, and they didn't change that opinion any. No team has clinched a bid or lost one at this point, obviously. I think they just missed an opportunity tonight....even with a loss, hanging in vs a Top 10 team without your best player could have left a nice impression that might pay off if they're sitting on the bubble come March.

 

Ok, so you have no idea how the committee works.  That's fine. 

 

Suffice it to say, it's not 5 guys who pick and choose what games they want to watch and what teams they pay attention to based on what looks good on TV tonight and who's trending on twitter.  There is no risk of the scenario you've outlined ever happening and hurting Maryland's chances.  We'll be judged justly on our entire body of work, including last night but also including all of our other games.

[Mackus]

And the free throw shooting, which has seemingly been an issue for 5, 6, 7 years...

 

What was wrong with the free throw shooting?  Last night or all season?  We're not elite or anything, but we're also not awful.  75% last night is perfectly acceptable, especially considering how often they got there.  72.5% on the year is perfectly acceptable as well.  I think you are overestimating what percentage of free throws get made.  Last year 79% led the country.  75% is top-20.  73% is top-60.  72% is top-100.  Of 350 teams.

 

Dodd and Cheko are bad from the line, but they are big men, most aren't good.  The rest of the guys are all more or less reliable, and Trimble is both the best at getting to the line and the best at making them once he's there, he's a huge asset in that regard.

[Mackus]

They better learn how to rebound and play defense or it'll be a long year. Disgusting effort defensively. Pathetic. It hasn't been good all year. ISU just missed open shot after open shot. ASU shot 50+ % from 3. VMI put up 50 in the first half.

 

Agreed.  I don't think the defense has been bad all year, but I agree it's rarely been good.  Last night was an outlier for how bad it was, but even wiping that away, we need to improve.  We've got a few good on-the-ball defenders, but haven't figured out team and help defense yet.  That's a bit to be expected with 5 newcomers getting significant time in the rotation.

[BSLMattJergensen]

Newsflash : The Cavs are good, like legit good, as in a Top Ten team in the nation good.

 

Tony Bennett's team is well schooled in his style and they did what they wanted to win on both ends of the floor. Their defense was especially stifling in the first 6 minutes. Excellent help, and solid rotation. But then again that's what they do. The Terps shot over 40% from the field which considering UVA's defense is pretty respectable. They also did a good job getting to the foul line, though you'd like to see the FT % higher (27 of 36 - 75%).

 

The Pack line is all about defense and defensive rebounding and this was an area where the Terps inside deficiencies were on display - Dodd, Graham and Cervosky all had rough evenings and were whipped on the boards 34-21. Then again that's what they do. Only one team (Wake Forest) grabs a higher percentage of available defensive rebounds. Only Kentucky and Texas have forced opponents into less accurate shooting inside the arc. Only two teams -- Louisville or Kentucky -- have granted their foes fewer points per possession.
 

It would have helped if Wells and Smoz would have been available. Wells more for defense as he could have matched with Justin Anderson who MD had no answer for and Smoz as another shooter to stretch the defense. They combined for 31 points, eight rebounds and five assists in Maryland's upset win over the Cavaliers last season so I think that not having them did hurt the Terps chances.

 

Either way I'm not that upset about them losing to a Top Ten team. The defense broke down too often on rotations and that's a credit to the offense that makes the defense actually defend for twenty seconds or more EVERY trip. That's a rarity in the game and it wears you down.

 

I prefer to look at the Terps ability to make good decisions. They had only 7 turnovers. 7. Against one of the best defensive teams in the nation. That's one to build on. Long way to go guys.

[BSLMikeLowe]

Ok, so you have no idea how the committee works.  That's fine. 
 
Suffice it to say, it's not 5 guys who pick and choose what games they want to watch and what teams they pay attention to based on what looks good on TV tonight and who's trending on twitter.  There is no risk of the scenario you've outlined ever happening and hurting Maryland's chances.  We'll be judged justly on our entire body of work, including last night but also including all of our other games.

So the committee doesn't watch any games. That's a relief. Hopefully the stats don't look as bad as what I saw.

[Mackus]

So the committee doesn't watch any games. That's a relief. Hopefully the stats don't look as bad as what I saw.

 

Who said that?  They watch all the games.  Am I missing some sarcasm here?  The things you've said about the committee are nothing similar to how they judge teams and make their selections. 

[BSLMikeLowe]

Who said that?  They watch all the games.  Am I missing some sarcasm here?  The things you've said about the committee are nothing similar to how they judge teams and make their selections. 

Yeah, that was sarcasm. I think you're making my point sound like a bigger deal than was intended, which is simply that they missed an opportunity to make a good (and perhaps to some a first) impression last night.

[Mackus]

They missed an opportunity to add to their resume with another big win.  The folks on the committee who are in charge of following the Big Ten certainly already have seen the Terps and will continue watching them closely.  I think you are greatly overstating style points and the impact of a "first impression".  It's much more thorough than that.

[You Play to Win the Game]

I also think with respect to the bubble, how you are playing in February is exponentially more important than how you played in November and December. Currently, I don't think this is a bubble team, I think they're going to make the tournament somewhat comfortably.

[Mackus]

I also think with respect to the bubble, how you are playing in February is exponentially more important than how you played in November and December. Currently, I don't think this is a bubble team, I think they're going to make the tournament somewhat comfortably.

 

Sometimes last ten games counts for a lot, sometimes it's your entire body of work.  That's one of those things that tends to change from year-to-year depending on who's running the committee, kind of like those "areas of emphasis" from refs that change from year-to-year.

 

I agree that this is comfortably a tournament team, though, unless we lose to a couple cupcakes while Dez is out and blemish our resume a bit.  But even if we lose to OSU, as long as we take care of business and then have a solid Big 10 season when Dez is back, I think we're in real good shape.  I've seen enough positives from the big men to think they'll provide the bear minimum that we need to be a consistent team.

[BSLZackKiesel]

After the Iowa State game, I said how huge that was because it took some pressure off of the UVA and OSU games. We didn't know that Dez would be lost for a month at the time, but anything can happen. Winning at least one of those games was crucial, and to have it be one of the two ranked teams was big. ISU beat #20 Arkansas last night, which helps.

 

After the game Wednesday night, I said that they just need to tread water until Dez gets back. Take care of the cupcakes, play hard against OSU, and make it into B1G play. Hopefully they can get Smotrycz back for OSU.