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[BSLChrisStoner]

BSL: Terps run past ND in the 2nd half; What did we see?
http://baltimorespor...d-2nd-half-see/

 

The University of Maryland Terrapins ended a 2 game losing streak with a 74-66 win over Notre Dame to improve to 11-7 overall, and 3-2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

 

The Terps will next head to NCST on Monday night.

 

What did we see?

1) Maryland’s comeback was earned through some strong defensive effort over the entire course of the 2nd half. It was great see, and a good win for the psyche of the fan-base (and likely the MD players themselves).

 

2) Maryland’s early 10-4 lead to start the game was quickly erased, with a 17-2 Notre Dame run. The Irish went to the half leading the Terps 34-25.
2a) At halftime, the Terps were 3 of 15 from 3 point land. Like many opponents, the Irish were utilizing a zone defense against MD, and MD was willing to force shots up from outside. For the game, the Terps finished 7 of 25 from 3. So, MD’s attempts from outside went down in the 2nd half, and their makes went up.
2b) In the first 20 minutes of play, the Terps had 10 more FG attempts than ND, but had converted 3 less shots. ND shot a blistering 58%, while MD was just 32% from the floor.  This changed in the 2nd half, with MD finishing having made 39% of their shots (25-64). Notre Dame’s shooting percentage fell to 48%.
2c) Notre Dame’s first basket of the 2nd half came with just over 13 minutes left in the game. The Irish missed several good looks on their own, but Maryland’s defense was also a factor. Maryland won the 2nd half 49-32.

 

3) Maryland had 8 turnovers at the half, and finished with 10 for the game. Clearly this was a significant factor in the Terps comeback as well.

 

4) The Terps had a 20-15 rebounding edge at half-time. This continued in the 2nd half, with MD winning on the glass 40-32.

 

5) Neither the Irish, nor the Terps were effective at getting to the line in the 1st half. Notre Dame made their only 2 attempts, while MD was 0-3. In the 2nd half, the Terps found ways to get to charity stripe. For the game, MD was 17 of 23.  (ND finished 11 of 20.)

 

6) In the 1st half, Wells, Smotrycz, and Faust were a combined 4 of 19 from the floor, including 1 for 9 from 3. The trio would wind-up combining for 35 points.
6a) Wells first basket came early in the 2nd half on a lob from Allen. Wells finished 11 of 13 from the line. Several times just bullying ND defenders. When MD needed important answers on the offensive end, Wells was looking to lead his team.
6b) It was a poor offensive game from Smotryz (2 of 12 from the floor, 1 of 4 from 3), but his made 3 was big. That shot extended MD’s lead to 5 (46-41) with 8:46 left. Smotrycz also added 8 boards.
6c) Faust was 4 of 10 from the floor, and just 2 of 7 from 3. He did have some good defensive moments. One of his 3′s was important, as he used a good look from Wells to put MD up 69-61 with 1:14 left. Faust finished with 13 points, 2 assists, and 2 steals.
 

7) While Layman buried an early 3, and had a good slam with a nice move on the baseline; his offense still wasn’t there tonight (3 of 7 from the floor, 1 of 5 from 3).  While he wasn’t putting up the points, Layman did contribute with his 10 boards, and 3 assists.

 

8) Mitchell had 4 points, and 5 boards off the bench in the 1st half. A put-back from Mitchell pulled MD within 1 (34-33) in the 2nd half. Another basket inside, again pulled MD within 1 (36-35). A good game overall from Mitchell was marred slightly by his foul on the defensive end with just over 2 minutes to go. Mitchell finished with 10 points and 7 boards (6 offensive). Mitchell has his flaws and limitations, but he can help a roster when he plays with the energy he showed tonight.

 

9) The Terps reclaimed the lead (39-36) when Allen hit a 3 from the wing. Allen finished with 14 points (5 of 13 from the field), with 5 boards, 4 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block. He’s is a difference maker on both ends of the floor.

 

10) Several times it appeared that ND was going to make things tight down the stretch. Good job from the Terps to hold on, and get the win.

 

11) Cleare had a nice spin, and short-jumper in the post with just over 5 minutes left. Fouled on the play, he made his FT attempt. Another basket inside from Cleare, pushed the lead to 10 (64-54) with under 3 minutes to play. Cleare finished with 7 points, 2 boards, and a block.

 

12) Where was Peters tonight? The only thing in his state line was 1 turnover.

 

13) MD had 13 assists on their 25 made FG’s tonight.

[Mackus]

Fantastic second half, and it all started with the defense.  The offense was continuing their struggles from the first half for the opening 4-6 minutes of the second half, but the defense stepped it up to a level they haven't reached for even a short stretch at any point this season.  Eventually the offense started seeing their shots drop and the non-trivial deficit turned into a nice lead.

 

Allen and Mitchell got them back to about even with very nice, high energy starts to the second half.  Once Maryland got even, it became the Dez show.  He was fantastic.  That's the type of go-to guy that we need him to be all the time.

 

This team is perhaps becoming schizo.  I think it's even more than just a home/road thing.  The last four games have seen four positive halves and four negative halves.  The whole GT game, the first half against Pitt, and the second half tonight the team played well enough to look like a team that should easily be dancing.  The whole FSU game, the second half against Pitt, and the first half tonight they looked like a team that would struggle to win 6 games in the ACC.

 

This team isn't getting any smarter, even during the nice 2nd half there were a lot of mental mistakes, particularly the final 7 minutes or so when ND was trying to get back in it.

 

It's nice to at least see the potential and good play that all of us hoped for at the outset of the season.  In a way it makes the struggles more frustrating, but I'll still take it over the alternative.  Hopefully we see the good side of this team more often than the bad the rest of the way, though I'm still far from confident in that being the outcome.

[BSLZackKiesel]

Still a matter of too little, too late for this team but it's nice to finally see them playing hard for a change. Not sure what sparked it, but somehow someone was able to relay to this bunch that maybe playing with some effort would produce something other than a blowout loss. 

 

Even still, they were making horrible decisions on the court throughout the game and were lucky that they didn't come back to bite them in the second half. They were actually fighting for loose balls and going strong to the hoop. They were way too reliant on the 3-point shot in the first half, and seemed reluctant to go to the hoop with two hands.

 

I thought they finally found ways to get the ball inside to Mitchell and Cleare, and it paid off. This team has two talented big men yet fails to use them properly. Seth Allen looks like he's finally back to almost 100%, which helps. When this team is at its best, they are working the ball inside and getting to the free-throw line. Even if they don't make the free-throws, they have a big size advantage over most teams, and can use that to their benefit. Their best half-court offense is being physical underneath, but most of the time they fail to realize that. 

 

Good win, but in the long run it won't matter much. Hopefully they can finish out the season strong so that they can have a little confidence going into the Big Ten. Plus it'd be nice to have some hope of beating Duke for the last time. That's really the one thing they can hang their season on at this point.

[Oriole85]

Still a matter of too little, too late for this team but it's nice to finally see them playing hard for a change. Not sure what sparked it, but somehow someone was able to relay to this bunch that maybe playing with some effort would produce something other than a blowout loss. 

 

Even still, they were making horrible decisions on the court throughout the game and were lucky that they didn't come back to bite them in the second half. They were actually fighting for loose balls and going strong to the hoop. They were way too reliant on the 3-point shot in the first half, and seemed reluctant to go to the hoop with two hands.

 

I thought they finally found ways to get the ball inside to Mitchell and Cleare, and it paid off. This team has two talented big men yet fails to use them properly. Seth Allen looks like he's finally back to almost 100%, which helps. When this team is at its best, they are working the ball inside and getting to the free-throw line. Even if they don't make the free-throws, they have a big size advantage over most teams, and can use that to their benefit. Their best half-court offense is being physical underneath, but most of the time they fail to realize that. 

 

Good win, but in the long run it won't matter much. Hopefully they can finish out the season strong so that they can have a little confidence going into the Big Ten. Plus it'd be nice to have some hope of beating Duke for the last time. That's really the one thing they can hang their season on at this point.

Don't think the too little, too late term is the right one here. There's still plenty of season left. I still don't like their chances of making the dances especially given their road play (or lack of) aside from the Paradise Jam.

 

Just like I don't try to make too much of a single loss, I apply that principle to win as well. It's good to get this win, but if they can't build on it, it won't really matter.

[bnickle]

This roster isn't far away. Some glaring weaknesses hold them back.

It's why I'm still generally encouraged heading into Big 10 play. Just need Trimble or Wiley to be somewhat like Allen. A versatile,relatively high IQ guard.

Have to find a threat both offensively and defensively in the post. By far the biggest issue going forward.

[BSLMattJergensen]

Solid second half.

 

The game can be so simple sometimes if you let it. They took good care of the basketball and played defense. Biggest differences I noticed were their rotations on penetration and protecting the basket.

 

Good work against the 2-3. Use of the high post for high/low action and penetrate and pitch for open threes.

 

Mitchell and Cleare provided some lift inside offensively. The Terps also terrorized the Irish on the offensive glass.

 

Allen's health concerns make his playing time a mystery going forward but Turge was smart to ride the hot hand for as long as he could. I know Peters didn't get a lot of time tonight but they severely needed this win. Allen has really turned the corner in terms of shot selection and decision making and he needs to play 30 minutes plus each night for the Terps to be in most games.

[Mackus]

This roster isn't far away. Some glaring weaknesses hold them back.

It's why I'm still generally encouraged heading into Big 10 play. Just need Trimble or Wiley to be somewhat like Allen. A versatile,relatively high IQ guard.

Have to find a threat both offensively and defensively in the post. By far the biggest issue going forward.

 

Agree with all of this.  They've got the core of a very solid team.  Just need someone to step up as the true go-to guy and some inside presence.  We all want Dez to be that guy, he's the closest we've got, but he hasn't been consistent enough yet.  Maybe he can have a Drew Nicolaus type senior year though and be the man next season.  Finding that type of #1 guy, or having someone from the pack emerge as the #1 guy, is a lot to ask though if we haven't seen anything more than inconsistent flashes so far.

 

I'm confident enough in the guard play with Allen and Peters.  Adding Trimble and Wiley to the mix will only make it better.  But I don't have any confidence in the interior play.  If we've got any scholarships left, Turgeon should be scouring for a JuCo or play-right-away transfer big man who can be a presence on both ends, doesn't sound to me like Reed will be an impact player his freshman year.  Even with both Mitchell and Cleare having relatively nice games last night, the only thing either is capable of offensively is finishing after someone else has created an open look for them, and they aren't great even at finishing those.  Mitchell can also get offensive putbacks.  But neither of these guys have any post moves that are capable of consistently working.  They are the two worst offensive big men we've had in a very long time, at least in terms of being the top 2 big men in the rotation.  Even other overmatched guys like Padgett at least had a few moves they could use to score on occasion.  Mitchell and Cleare essentially only score if they are set up perfectly by another teammate.  Maybe one or two buckets a game between them come from getting them the ball on the low block and letting them work against a defender.

[BSLChrisStoner]

CSN Baltimore had a nice article after the game last night...

http://www.csnbaltim...n-vs-notre-dame

 

There was something different about the way Maryland head coach Mark Turgeon walked into the locker room at halftime of his team’s Wednesday-night matchup against Notre Dame.

He had every reason to be irate if he chose to be. The Terrapins had shot 32 percent from the field, allowed the opposition to shoot close to 60 percent, and turned the ball over eight times through the first 20 minutes.

 

But that wasn’t what happened. What happened was more a complete flip, a test of reverse psychology from the hard-lined philosophy that had seen Maryland lose back-to-back games by more than 20 points for the first time since 2008.

 

“We thought he would be, you know, screaming and throwing water bottles around, but he just came in calm,” sophomore center Shaquille Cleare, who finished with seven points, said after the game. “Calm as the sea.”

Turgeon recalls the scene in the locker room.

 

“I didn’t really know what to say but I walked in there and I said, ‘I don’t know what I’ve done to you guys, but we’re not playing the way we’re capable of playing,’” Turgeon remembers. “'We’ll make a pact. We’re just going to have fun.'”

 

 

This is the first time I remember in Turgeon's tenure where I feel he adjusted to the moment (more philosophically vs. tactically) and connected with his roster. It was very good to see.

[bnickle]

And they offer no rim protection inside. Slow to move their feet and help and little lift off their feet.

I feel like ND could have went down to that white post player all night and owned us.If not through him putting up uncontested jumphooks over Cleare and Mitchell then passing out of the inevitable double team.

Agree that Is love to see us go find a Juco/transfer/grad student big that can give us some offense inside. As you said, 95% of Cleare and Mitch scoring is set up by someone else. More often than not an offensive putback right underneath the hoop. No back to the basket ability at all.

[BSLChrisStoner]

And they offer no rim protection inside. Slow to move their feet and help and little lift off their feet.

I feel like ND could have went down to that white post player all night and owned us.If not through him putting up uncontested jumphooks over Cleare and Mitchell then passing out of the inevitable double team.

Agree that Is love to see us go find a Juco/transfer/grad student big that can give us some offense inside. As you said, 95% of Cleare and Mitch scoring is set up by someone else. More often than not an offensive putback right underneath the hoop. No back to the basket ability at all.

 

There would have to be multiple departures to bring someone else in. Don't see it happening.

[Mackus]

There would have to be multiple departures to bring someone else in. Don't see it happening.

 

Why do we need multiple departures to bring in one new guy?

[BSLChrisStoner]

Why do we need multiple departures to bring in one new guy?

 

There are 13 allowed scholarships right? The expected roster is 14 deep.. with Graham coming off scholarship for next year. If someone else left, think he would get it.

 

2014-15 Terps
Guards:  Faust (Sr), Allen (Jr), Peters (Soph), Trimble (Frosh), Wiley (Frosh)
Wings: Wells (Sr), Layman (Jr), Nickens (Frosh)
Bigs: Mitchell (Jr), Cleare (Jr), Smotrycz (Sr), Graham (Sr), Dodd (Soph), Reed (Frosh)

[glenn__davis]

Didn't get to see the game, but certainly nice to see the result, and most importantly IMO nice to see Turgeon adjust as Chris mentioned.  I think I probably question the talent on the roster a little more than most on here, but there's no way they should be as bad as they've been so far.  So while I don't think ND is very good, they do have a few decent wins and maybe this is something the Terps can build on.

[Mackus]

There are 13 allowed scholarships right? The expected roster is 14 deep.. with Graham coming off scholarship for next year. If someone else left, think he would get it.

 

2014-15 Terps
Guards:  Faust (Sr), Allen (Jr), Peters (Soph), Trimble (Frosh), Wiley (Frosh)
Wings: Wells (Sr), Layman (Jr), Nickens (Frosh)
Bigs: Mitchell (Jr), Cleare (Jr), Smotrycz (Sr), Graham (Sr), Dodd (Soph), Reed (Frosh)

 

Then force Cleare or Dodd out.  No reason not to upgrade the team just so we can keep non-contributors on scholarship.

 

Probably a chance that someone leaves the team just naturally, without being nudged. 

[BSLChrisStoner]

Then force Cleare or Dodd out.  No reason not to upgrade the team just so we can keep non-contributors on scholarship.

 

Probably a chance that someone leaves the team just naturally, without being nudged. 

 

It's mid-January, and Turgeon is continuing to start Cleare. Think he is going to force him out? He was a Top 40ish recruit. Playing the Harrison Brothers only helped his ranking, but there had to be something there that numerous evaluators liked. Figure out a way to tap into it.

One of the reasons Turgeon continues to start Cleare, is that he says Cleare works as hard as anyone on the roster. It would be a poor sign for Turgeon to force him off because of that. It won't happen.

Dodd and MD stuck with each other through a year of prep school. It would also be surprising if he was gone after this year.

[Mackus]

I expect Turgeon to get this team into the tournament next year, and I think he knows that he needs to or else his job may be in jeopardy.  If he feels a transfer player is more apt to help this team than Cleare or Dodd, he has to make the move, whether it looks good or not.  Cleare should've done more in the two years he was here to solidify his scholarship moving forward.  That's on him.  Dodd was a long shot from the start, lucky to get the Terps offer, and I don't think it'd be a shameful act if the Terps decide to use his scholarship elsewhere.

 

I won't think less of Turgeon is he makes the tough decision and tells some guys who have been here that they are no longer welcome.  If it improves the team, it'll be something we have to consider.  I don't know if that type of transfer student is even out there, but if he is, they gotta think about it.  Wouldn't be the first or last time the Terps have quietly let a student know that they'd be better off looking to go elsewhere.  They did it with Pe'shon just last year.

[BSLChrisStoner]

I'll have Rob & Mike ask Jeff Ermann tonight his thoughts on that... he's more plugged in than I am. I'd be surprised.

Re: Howard...  playing 30.7 minutes per game for USC.. 9.8 ppg, 4.1 assists, 36% FG%, 32% from 3, 2.8 turnovers

Ram a better perimeter defender vs. Howard, but would have been good to have had Howard around when Allen was hurt.

[Mackus]

I'd be surprised if it happens, too, because a lot of stars need to align.  There has to be a solid big man looking to leave his old school who's eligible to play right away, and that guy would have to be willing to come to Maryland.

 

But if that type of player exists, not wanting to force Clear or Dodd or someone else out to free up a scholarship is not sufficient reason to pass up on such a player.

[mweb08]

I think forcing out a player that you recruited and signed is a shameful act.

[BSLChrisStoner]

I think forcing out a player that you recruited and signed is a shameful act.

 

I tend to agree. These are college kids, not pros.  If you have someone like Cleare, who you admit is working as hard as anyone... and you brought him in, I don't think you can show him the door.

 

IMO, MD has their 13-14 guys for next year. Go win with them. More than enough talent with those 14 guys.