Terrapins' Clock Strikes Twelve in Orlando
Dancing shoes proved to be too big for a young Maryland team. An unfavorable match-up with a more physical Xavier proved to be too much for the Terps in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Musketeers bullied the Terps with a tough zone defense for much of the night, causing Maryland to settle for many difficult outside shots. As proven throughout the season, Maryland lives and dies by the three and it was not there tonight. The Terps shot 41% from the field and an abysmal 7/27 from three point land. Going into the game, everyone knew that Melo Trimble needed to show up big; he did not. In what could be his last game as a college student, Melo only manage to shoot 5/15 from the field, 1/9 from the three-point line, and 2/4 free throws. Despite their higher seeding, Maryland felt like the underdog for most of the game. Though they lead several times, including riding a 6-0 run to a 1-piont halftime lead, they never seemed in control of any phase of the game. Only one Terp seemed to be fully engaged on both ends of the court. Freshman Kevin Huerter lead the team with 19 points and a few big threes that kept the Terps within striking distance. Unfortunately for the 6th seed, no one else stepped up.
So now the big question for Maryland is whether or not this was a successful season. Based on the fact that they lost 4 of their 5 starters from last year, I would say yes. Any year a team only loses 7 regular season games starting 3 freshmen should be considered a good season. It is undoubtedly a tough way to end the season going one-and-done in both the Big Ten and NCAA Tournaments, but the young players gained valuable experience and look to be a major threat to the Big Ten next year. If Coach Turgeon can establish a physical, inside presence with the addition of a solid big man, who can start in front of a healthy Michael Cekovsky, the Terps look like a potential Final Four contender heading into the 2017-18 season.
