So the game is over and I have to endure the chants for 2 1/2 hours such as USA, USA at Alex, We won’t miss you, Don’t come back, ACC ACC, Not our rivals, and all the while Coach K is urging the crowd to continue. I hang around for the Coach K presser where the Carolina press guys lobbed softballs and then I asked very simply “Coach it seems like the fans are ecstatic to be rid of Maryland–how do you feel about it?” (The following audio should be started around the 3:40 mark to hear the question and answer). Memo-42 Obviously I must have touched a nerve. But I wonder how Coach K really feels. Maybe he is happy that the Terps will soon be gone.
At halftime I overheard two Carolina writers talking about what a bad decision it was to move to the BIG, and how Terrapin nation was solidly against the move. Needless to say, I told these guys they were clueless and how great the BIG was going to be for the Terps. They called me part of a lunatic fringe. I then brought up that Maryland was always the stepchild of the ACC and prime example was the ACC Tournament being in Greensboro 90% of the time. They called it a neutral court to which the laughter it brought to me almost made me sick.
As I left Cameron Indoor my only thought was Sayonara.
Turge was pretty content with the Terps effort and offensive performance today. No doubt Duke played excellently. Quinn Cook played as well as I have seen him play and the freshman Sulaimon was outstanding with 9-13 shooting for 25 points. Seth Curry definitely seemed to be hobbling at some points during the game.However the Terps hung with the Devils for most of the game until Mason Plumlee got hot and the rest was history.
Dez started off with 7 points and 5 bounds by the 4 minute break but quieted down afterwards. Charles Mitchell is back scoring 13 on 5-8 shooting. Alex had a quiet 8 point 10 rebound game. He was only able to get 6 shots in 34 minutes. But he did have 1 magnificent only early in the game only to be matched by a reverse dunk by Plumlee late in the game.
Seth Allen was suspended for the first half for what Turgeon referred to as a minor infraction. He was no factor in the game.
2 things were consistent with the Terps effort today: they won the rounding battle 43-34 and again were plaqued by 14 turnovers. Duke shot a high 52.% from the field including 11-22 from the 3 line.
Nick struggled a bit at the point having trouble with Quinn Cook’s pressure. PeShon just cannot get a break as a couple of his layup attempts teased the bucket but fell off the rim. It breaks my heart to see him struggling with his game because he is such a good kid.
Believe it or not there were lots of purple jerseys throughout the arena. Must have been Duke fans from Baltimore.
I am about to watch the game again so I will add to the blog tomorrow if I notice anything. The Terps (15-5 overall and 3-4 in the ACC) are now desperate for a win Tuesday night at FSU.
Mricklen
Bruce, I do agree with the “exit stage right” re the ACC . We and all other non NC schools should have waved goodbye years ago.
It is so difficult as yesterday, to watch the Duke jerseys pulling and pushing the red ones without whistles.
But this Terp team is terrible. Over rated is beyond correct. Difficult to even see the NIT, for this un coached gang of ragamuffins.
The difference in quality of players is stark.
But not more so than the inept offensive and defensive schemes.
Duke beats ou with 3point shooting, and yet all game their shots are wide open.
No challenging the ball wherever it is in just inept.
I know you like Turgeon, and he dies seem to be a nice guy, but in over his head. He is not a premier coach or recruiter from the evidence available.
Irony of ironies is that Edsall seems to be the better hire at this point.
· 11/12/2019
Bruce
Mike
–It’s way too early in the ACC season to make definitive judgments. The Terps are 3-4 with 11 games left. Your thought process would have had the Ravens shutting down after the Denver home loss. In College basketball, the only significant part of the season occurs in March. I really thought that offensively, the Terps played much better. Freddy made a good point about waiting for Peters—next year he is a freshman. Our current guards must step it up. Last year Quinn Cook was horrible, now he is the point guard for one of he best teams in the country.You are jumping ship and there is no storm.
· 11/12/2019
freddy from boca
to mike r..exit stage right. a snagglepuss fan.
despite numerous turnovers, missed outside shots, several missed inside shots, missed free throws and a lack of in game adjustments to curb the plethora of open looks duke was getting from the outside md was competitive and relatively close at the half. one thing i don’t understand..with the score 13-12 md turgeon sends in 3 subs at once.. howard, padgett and aronhalt..3 guys who couldn’t even make duke’s team. deep down inside i think turgeon has dreamed about being a hockey coach and wants to make line changes. for those who don’t follow hockey, a line has 3 players and they come on and off the ice together. strange substitutions, lack of in game and half time adjustments seem to be a hallmark for this coach this year. and i know the season is only haf over and i know it’s a young team with most of the minutes going to freshman and sophomore’s but not one freshman hasn’t really stepped up on any kind of consistent basis this year. matter of fact, not one player has played consistenly well this year. i know there are problems at guard and no one seems to be able to play point very well but still only 6 shots for len. he wasn’t in foul trouble. last week turgeon said the terps were 0-4 coming out of timouts. either he has the dumbest players in the game or turgeon needs to find a different way of getting his point across. at the beginning of the month turgeon said how much he loved this team and just couldn’t wait to see where they would be in a month. well that “one month” is almost here..i don’t see any improvement. yes they play hard and usually play good defense but the half court offense is dreadful. a good point guard would certainly help but why can’t guys set good screens and solid picks. why is the spacing so poor. and how could a team have so many players on scholarship who miss so many shots for 10 feet and in. many fans are saying..can’t wait for roddy peters to get here next year but of course he’ll be a freshman. the season is far from over and hopefully this team and coach can get it together, soon. maybe turgeon can figure out a way to only substitute one guy at a time to keep some continuity on the floor. he really needs to find players that can make a layup on a consistent basis and work from there.
· 11/12/2019
Mricklen
Hope springs eternal…
Last year Cook was a 4 star recruit out of Oak Hill.
Who do we have close to that pedigree?
The Ravens finally dismissed Cameron, and Harbaugh got off his duff and opened the dog house door, who is going to make that difference for this mediocre team?
Remember we were playing cupcakes at home, to build the image, and even then the visitors seemed to have a few top line talents that outshone our heralded recruits.
There are so many weaknesses which we all recognize, and unfortunately there are no free agents available.
· 11/12/2019
Mricklen
Peters is another combo guard, which doesn’t address the glaring weakness at the point.
Plus we need a “skilled ” powerful front line infusion.
Only positive is that we recognize that Ken is not NBA ready, perhaps the scouts will as well.
If not we are back to the Terps of Gary’s end of tenure.
· 11/12/2019
Jose
Rome wasn’t built in a day
· 11/12/2019
freddy from boca
maybe the way the team played last year with limited talent and the expectations of a good recruiting class this year caused fans to have higher than realistic expectations. there is going to be a lot of heat on turgeon if this season doesn’t turn around and next year there will be great expectations despite the fact that there will probably be a freshman at point. it’s the coaches job to get the right pieces to the puzzle and develop those pieces. this year’s freshman class has not shown any consistency. only mitchell has had more than a couple of good games. the team at this team doesn’t seem to be getting better. in turgeon’s 4th year the expectations will be very high and they should be. you don’t pay a guy 2 million for an average program. edsall had a horrible first year in many ways but his second year, though not successful with many wins went ok because the team played hard every game and every qb got hurt and he was more mindful of what he said to the media.. edsall has next year and probably one more after that. his 4th year the expctations will be high just like it will be with turgeon. if neither edsall or turgeon don’t have their programs playing at a high level in their 4th year they will probably get fired and if they get fired look for anderson to get fired as well. hard to keep your job if your 2 big hirs don’t work out. rome wasn’t built in a day but you probably have no more than 4 years to build a football and basketball program and really it should take less time to build a basketball program
· 11/12/2019
Jose
I agree with everything you say, but I think people put too much expectations on freshman.AAU basketball doesn’t translate to college basketball.it’s two different styles of play.I’d like to see coaches pay more attention to the High School schedule than AAU.us as fans are putting pressure on 18 yr old kids to save the program and it is a unreal goal.
· 11/12/2019