SB Nation - Greivis Vasquez

Individual Stats Now Available

Akula Wolf — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:42:34 -0000

Here. W-L projections are out as well: 19-12, 6-10. Sounds about right at this point.

-- With Tracy Smith taking such a huge chunk of the shots, the leftovers are being distributed pretty evenly throughout the rest of the lineup. Everybody else getting significant minutes is taking between 15%-22% of the shots. In that regard, they're a little like this team.

-- Javi's assist rate ranks fourth nationally and is tops among power conference players.

Elsewhere:

-- Ed Davis, Deon Thompson, Ty Zeller...not a bad frontcourt. Will Graves should probably shoot less often.

-- Four ACC schools rank in the top ten in effective height. Ugh.

-- At least Ish Smith isn't turning the ball over quite as often.

-- Clemson needs a hero and the person for that job, clearly, is Ray Dungeon.

-- Tough start for Greivis Vasquez.

-- Iman Shumpert is still killing possessions with great frequency, but Georgia Tech's heralded freshman class is panning out well and their offense is vastly improved. If they can find a way to cut down on the turnovers...

-- Andre Dawkins holy crap.

-- Look at all those ugly turnover rates. Scoring points in the paint against FSU has been virtually impossible, and it looks like they're following the same win-ugly-with-defense model they did last season.

-- Note the number of possessions in the VMI/Seton Hall game, which ended in regulation. Who do I have to bribe to get VMI on the schedule? Or at least on TV? That system of theirs is epically self-defeating (just look at their FG% D) but so much fun.

The Big Blue Daily Mail -- Moving On Up Edition

Truzenzuzex — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 00:03:47 -0000

Well, it seems that the Villanova Wildcats' loss is the Kentucky Wildcats' gain, as UK moves up a spot to #3 ~~between~~ behind the Kansas Jayhawks and the Texas Longhorns.

As John Wall continues to garner Freshman of the Week awards from the SEC, Kentucky has a week to ponder it's recent success versus the North Carolina Tar Heels, Indiana Hoosiers and Connecticut Huskies, as well as working to improve their game, particularly on the defensive side.

If Kentucky's game versus IU proved nothing else, it showed that the 'Cats can handle a hostile arena with aplomb, even one that's said to have done some pretty ugly things lately. John Gasaway of Basketball Prospectus ponders the remarkable sequence that Daniel Orton had in the North Carolina game where he blocked a shot and dished an assist in the same short time frame, and in a later post, notes that DeMarcus Cousins is getting 22% of UK's misses back.

The news follows the jump.

idsnews.com | Indiana Daily Student |
This wasn’t the first time this season that Assembly Hall has been a hotbed of insults. Student fans were as loud on Dec. 1 against Maryland, but their chants included racist and derogatory slurs toward Maryland senior guard Greivis Vasquez of Venezuela and sophomore forward Jin Soo Choi of South Korea. This time, the yells were mostly targeted at Calipari.

Wow. Glad we didn't see any "racist and derogatory slurs" on Saturday.
The Big Blue Nation Report: Five Quick Questions for Mr. Leach...
An interview with Tom Leach
Hot UK plays it cool in potential 10-0 start | KentuckySports.com
Awesome job by Matthew Mitchell. Could UK hoops finally become a contendah?
Grading SEC Coaches | SEC Corner - al.com
Brooks gets surprisingly high grades.
Wildcat Blue In a Sea of Orange: Rich Brooks Wildcats garner post season honors
Monday's news & notes: UK's Wall making headlines, MSG a home away from home
Kansas freshman Xavier Henry is just as impressive as John Wall - Seth Davis - SI.com
Henry is the first to recognize that Wall has earned every bit of his publicity, but he will not concede that Wall is the better player. Henry also confesses that Wall's hot start has provided him with extra incentive. "It does kind of motivate me that he plays like that and gets all this attention, so if I play just as well then I should get the same," Henry told me in a telephone interview. "Just don't sleep on me. That's all I've got to say."

Play somebody, Xavier. Then talk smack.
Basketball Prospectus | Unfiltered
The always-worthy John Gasaway.
Izzo speaks out after Roy Williams throws another shot at Delvon Roe | College Hoops Journal
Another bit of bad behavior from Roy Williams.
Is Roy Williams the biggest phony in college basketball? | College Hoops Journal
CHJ takes Roy Willams down -- hard.
Ex-Cat Shagari Alleyne Signed by Halifax Rainmen
Is Wall or Cobb the better athlete? | Vaught's Views
Who cares? Both are great.
" BBL: Could Kentucky play in New York every year? John Clay’s Sidelines
John Clay's Big Blue Links.
Kentucky and Louisville have flipped fortunes | College Hoops Journal
The Kentucky Wildcats aren’t in the clear and aren’t guaranteed a Final Four berth this season. The Louisville Cardinals aren’t mired in mediocrity and aren’t one of the eight worst teams in the Big East, all of the sudden.

But that doesn’t mean these two intrastate rivals haven’t switched positions in the past eight months. Think about where each of these programs were on Selection Sunday. It’s remarkable, when you think about it.

Indeed.
courier-journal.com | Chris Diggs - UK Fan | The Courier-Journal
When IU fans have to go back twenty years and talk about NCAA violations to put down a rival, I can't help but laugh. Seriously. Out of the last 20 meetings, the Cats have won 15 of those years. Why don't we talk about that? Why don't we talk about what is the most important thing, what happens on the floor?

Or, we can talk about something else that happened this decade -- Cell Phone Kelvin Sampson.
Thoughts on Kentucky and Kansas
Very thoughtful and interesting comments from a Kansas fan. I think Kansas is significantly better than UK right now, but at the end of the year, it could be a horse race. I would read this if I were you. He gets a few little things wrong, but mostly he does a very good job.
Wildcats Break for Exams - KENTUCKY OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE
Which basketball team will stay unbeaten longest? - Mike DeCourcy - College Basketball - Sporting News
Always worth a read.

Maryland SG Commit Terrence Ross Is Blowing Up

Ben Broman — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:01:47 -0000

Sorry for the Ross posts, but what else do you want us to talk about? Image via a.espncdn.com

View full size photo »

After Dave Telep sung his praises this weekend, Terrence Ross caught the eye of another major scouting service: ESPN. They called him the best performer of the High School Hoops Festival - which, by the way, included guys like Kendall Marshall and Quinn Cook - and the writeup couldn't have been more encouraging.

This athletic wing has great size and a big-time shooting stroke. Ross can knock down 3s off the catch and after one or two rhythm dribbles. He is shot-ready on the catch and releases the ball with great elevation and follow-through. Ross shoots over smaller defenders and late closers with ease. He runs the floor on the break for spot-up and penetration kick outs, of which he is capable of making two or three in a row. Ross has NBA range and his confidence is sky-high. Defensively, Ross was alert in the passing lanes and really worked to defend the dribble by moving his feet and keeping his hands active. Ross must work to develop his scoring moves off the dribble and make going to the boards a habit. Still, he is a deadly offensive weapon. Maryland coach Gary Williams will have fun coaching this kid.

Yes please, I'll take some of that.

You can bet that if ESPN and Scout's main men took notice that he'll be moving on up the boards. It's safe to say that Rivals will have seen it, too, and he'll be improving his standing there, too. If he can put up this type of season all year - which includes some very big time opponents on national TV - it's not a stretch to believe he could legitimately be a top 25 player.

Ross is a big time talent that is criminally underrated, in my opinion. He's super athletic, is a lights-out shooter, has a solid work ethic, and plays committed defense. There's really not much more at all you can ask for, and he's exactly what the doctor ordered for Maryland in 2010. He'll very nicely fill the void that Greivis Vasquez and Eric Hayes leave, and maybe even bring something extra to the table while doing it.

Oh, and having a Montrose Christian guy on the team while recruiting Justin Anderson can't be bad, either.

Of course, his status is still unclear, but as it distances further, I'm calming down about it. Time to pray that the coaching staff can just lock him up, because he looks like he could be very, very special one day.

Maryland Minute 12.13.09 - The Return to Terrence Ross News

Ben Broman — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 02:59:50 -0000

Dave Telep: Ross "Way Underrated"
Oi. Oh, and he also say "T Ross! Wow!" in a later tweet.

Terrence Ross Highlights
Okay, so it's really Montrose Christian highlights in general, but TRoss puts away about 5 3s in this video. He's #32.

Of course this would happen as soon as he starts having doubts.

Greivis Vasquez is Nutty
Sounds like he's getting back. Definitely ironic that a missed shootaround held the key to the season for him.

"It was all mental," Vasquez said. "This was a great game for me just to sit down on the bench and see everything from the outside in and get back to what I am. I'm the crazy guy who plays at Maryland and tries to make plays. That's who I am, and I'm going to be myself from now on."

High School Hoops Festival Report - NBE
Linked to it for the TRoss stuff, but there's a lot of goodies here from NBE from the Hoops Festival, which was, by the way, held in Upper Marlboro. The best stuff:

Justin Anderson, 2012, Montrose Christian: The athletic lefty is one of the top prospects in the class of 2012, and he showed why against St. Mary’s Ryken on Saturday. Anderson is a menace at both ends of the floor, picking up steals and deflections consistently on defense, and getting plenty of offensive rebounds at the other end. He has yet to demonstrate a consistent outside jumper, but he knocked down a couple of mid-range jumpers and had several tip-ins at the rim. Anderson has outstanding leaping ability and gets off the floor very quickly, enabling him to outrebound bigger players. He also passed the ball well, both in the halfcourt but especially in transition.

Michael Gbinije, 2011, Benedictine: Gbinije started off slowly, but really came alive once Benedictine got down early. Despite being hounded by Victor Oladipo, Gbinije dominated stretches of the game, hitting multiple threes, several mid-range jumpers and blocking shots on consecutive possessions. Furthermore, he went baseline for several solid baskets, including a finish over Hopkins. Gbinije has a very smooth offensive game, and he is extremely difficult to stop. When he gets going, he can be an absolutely dominant offensive performer. It’s also no surprise that Benedictine was down 9-0 when Gbinije was slowed by Oladipo, but came back once he came alive.

- Furthermore, Jones said that 2012 prospect James Robinson has an offer from Notre Dame and interest from Georgetown, Maryland, Texas and NC State.
...

- Mikael Hopkins: Maryland, Georgetown, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Syracuse, Florida, Florida State, Villanova and Pittsburgh.

C.J. Leslie Mixtape
Might as well keep posting these while the Terps are still being listed. The kid is absolutely ridiculous. Looks like an unpolished Kevin Garnett. - Ben G.

My Take: C.J.'s amazing, but Bishop Daniels is just as amazing. If Bello falls through, I wouldn't mind landing him, either.

Boston College Loses Again, This Time to Rhode Island
Wow. Just wow. BC is having a rough go of it right now.

Roy Williams: Big Baby
He apparently kicked out a Presbyterian fan (yes, Presbyterian) for yelling "Hey Deon, don't miss it" while Tarheel Deon Thompson was shooting a free throw. Could you ever see Gary ordering security to take away an opposing team's fans in the middle of a game? - Ben G.

My Take: Well...this is...strangely timely.

Maryland Rides Vasquez and Milbourne to 83-72 Win Over Eastern Kentucky

Ben Broman — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 23:36:49 -0000

More photos » by Rob Carr - AP

3 days ago: Marylan's Greivis Vasquez reacts after scoring and getting fouled during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Eastern Kentucky, Saturday, Dec. 12, 2009, in College Park, Md. (AP Photo/Rob Carr)

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When Maryland needed him, Greivis Vasquez delivered.

He didn't start the game after showing up late to a shootaround and had some rough times, as he had all this year, but as the Eastern Kentucky Colonels sat down two, on a run, with Maryland unable to make a shot, Vasquez did what he had to do: make big shots. He ended up with two threes in as many possessions, and sparked Maryland's offense that, at the time, was completely out of sync.

Maryland rode the momentum and ended up with an 83-72 win over EKU, putting them at 6-3 on the year.

Despite a fast start for Maryland with Vasquez on the bench (13-5 when he entered the game, up 17 shortly after), Eastern Kentucky steadily fought back and eventually tied the game in the second half on the strength of ridiculously good three point shooting and solid defense. Shortly after, Maryland's offense caught fire, spurred on by two big threes by Vasquez, who had struggled somewhat up to that point.

Sean Mosley was quiet after a breakout week that included solid games against Villanova and Indiana. Part of that might have been due to Vasquez's offensive reemergence; he led all scorers with 20 and paired that with 5 assists.

Props go out to Eric Hayes for a great performance today; he's been extremely consistent all year and had an important 14 points with 4 made threes. Landon Milbourne also quietly went about his business, returning to form with 19 points and 9 rebounds. He made big plays and didn't have too many lapses. This is the Milbourne you remember from last year.

As for Dino Gregory in his first game: he was okay, but definitely rusty. Some of his passes were iffy and his defense was inconsistent, but his jumper was absolutely money and he showed some very encouraging flashes. He probably got the start thanks to the need for perimeter defense.

EKU's shooting ability and lack of size meant that Jordan Williams wasn't very well fitted for this game: he isn't great guarding 6-6 people on the perimeter. Still, in limited time, he had 4 points and 5 rebounds, which was pretty good. He had some problems and looked very much like a freshman, but I'm still encouraged.

The strange thing was James Padgett's lack of playing time. He didn't see the floor, despite Jin Soo Choi inexplicably getting PT in a close game. I'm sure the lack of size for EKU and their perimeter shooting had plenty to do with it, but I've never been all that impressed with Choi's defense at any level. Puzzling indeed.

I'll try to go for some more analysis tomorrow, but for now, I'm okay with this result. It was closer than it should've been, that's for sure, but Vasquez looked like he was getting out of his funk and EKU is a tough team to beat when they're hot, as they were. Maryland has plenty to work on - defense especially among them - but it could've been worse.

Maryland Minute 12.11.09 - On the Eve of Dino Gregory's Return

Ben Broman — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 03:12:58 -0000

Hot topic: Gregory, of course - Terps Insider

Gary says that he's bigger than his stats.

"He fits a lot of those categories that don't necessarily show up on the stat sheet, and to belittle Dino's accomplishments last year is wrong. I think most basketball people with knowledge of basketball would say the same thing."

I agree, but at what point do the stats - that is, JWill's double-double - become bigger than the intangibles?

Gary, Players Excited for Dino's Return

Lots of complimentary quotes for the junior forward. I hope NuDino is half as good as he's being advertised. - Ben G.

Greivis Vasquez Quote Sheet: Disappointed and Angry
Time to pull it together, GV.

"I'm disappointed," Vasquez said. "It's horrible. I'm really angry at myself. I've worked too hard. I let so many things bother me, and I wasn't myself. And then we lost three games that we should have won. And it was all because supposedly the best player and the leader of the team didn't do what he needs to be doing, and I take responsibility. But the season's too early. I remember games like Georgetown and Duke last year, Georgetown beat us by 40 and Duke beat us by 40, and then I came on strong. So I'm not going to give up. That's the last thing I'm going to do. I'm a fighter. I've put the numbers up already, so I need just to go out there and have fun and play basketball."

Dude talks a lot.

C.J. Leslie Diary
Prepare for plenty of updates from CJL if he keeps this up. The ridiculous outside possibility be damned, he's just too exciting. Good news (nothing big or indicative of anything, but I'm saying it anyway):

For those that don’t know, I’m waiting until the spring to get everything decided with my recruitment. I’m just not sure about anything at this point, and it’s important for me to be sure. I don’t have any favorites and I’m just taking my time with the whole thing. (Editor’s note: C.J.’s most recent list included N.C. State, Kentucky, Oregon, Maryland, Connecticut, Georgetown and Florida)

Decisions loom for top ACC juniors - Dinich
Among them?

OL Bruce Campbell – His career has been marred by injuries, and he could use another year to get more experience, not to mention a better contract. Scouts Inc. has him at No. 4 in his position and No. 27 overall.

Oi, that would be bad. Very bad.

Turner ready to turn the page - WT
Really good read on CT. I'll miss him.

Early Season All-ACC Team - Blogger So Dear
Blogger So Dear takes a stab at his All-ACC picks thus far. I think they're pretty good except for the ROY part. How do you leave out Jordan Williams from that group and why is Dawkins ahead of him? ~Dave

Recruiting Report: Weekly recruiting roundup
Quiet week.

Maryland Minute 12.10.09 - Terps All-Decade Team

Ben Goldstein — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 00:02:36 -0000

Ah, the good old days...

View full size photo »

Turtle Waxing: Maryland Basketball All Decade Team

I think Blake, Dixon, and Baxter are obvious...don't know how I feel about Mouton and Gist being on there. I'd have Wilcox over Gist too. ~Dave

My Take: I'd keep Gist over Wilcox just based on games played, but I'd put Caner-Medley over Mouton. Anybody else have an opinion on this?

NBA Draft Stock: Landon Rising, Greivis Falling

IIRC, this is the first time Landon has cracked their mock draft. (He's #57, overall.) A lot will depend on how he holds up in ACC play but I could definitely see some NBA team taking a chance on his athleticism and work ethic. Greivis, meanwhile, has slipped down to #59.

3-Pointers: Greivis Vasquez is pressing - Mike DeCourcy - College Basketball - Sporting News

A little insight on Greivis' struggles. I still think he just needs to settle down and be himself. ~Dave

Wisconsin Badgers fall to Green Bay Phoenix - ESPN

Ugh...just when our loss to Wisconsin is starting to look not so bad, this happens. ~Dave

Dino Gregory: More Subbin’ Than Quizno’s

The friends over at Shell Games (always a good daily read, btw) speculate about Dino's role, based on a quote by Gary after the Nova game. Fun read. ~Dave

The Diamondback - Point guard trio making up for the loss of Toliver so far
Good breakdown of how players are stepping up after the loss of Toliver and Coleman to graduation last season. Replacing those two would be the equivalent of having to replace Juan and Bias in the same season, in my opinion...no easy task. ~Dave

Harvard Beats BC...Again
Does that mean Maryland will lose to them...again? - Ben B.

Recruiting Report: Season recap: Sal Conaboy
Sounds like he could be a year or two away from contributing. Still good, though.

At 6-5, 255 pounds, Conaboy will likely need to add weight and strength before he’s ready to make an impact in college. But depending on what he does between now and his arrival in College Park, Conaboy could be given a chance to work his way into contention for playing time. "They’re looking at him to come in and compete as a freshman, possibly as a guard or center -- the interior part of the line," Repshis said. "It’s too early to tell exactly how he’ll be able to contribute, but they do want him to come in and compete. And that’s all he’s looking for. What happens when he steps on campus that first year is yet to be determined. But he will go into the offseason preparing for the opportunity to play."

- Ben B.

Which Greivis Vasquez Is This? Comparing the Slumps

Ben Broman — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:17:12 -0000

More photos » by Nick Wass - AP

Maryland's Greivis Vasquez (21) fights for the ball against New Hampshire's Russell Graham, left, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Friday, Nov. 20, 2009 in College Park, Md. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

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It's not been uncommon for Maryland fans to fret over Greivis Vasquez' recent performance. After getting used to this Greivis Vasquez, we have perhaps forgotten that this one still exists.

So, is this Greivis Vasquez new (and worse)? Or is this the same streaky, on-and-off Greivis of the past?

FotB (that's "friend of the blog") Matt over at Turtle Waxing went down this road earlier today, examining the reason's Greivis' play has changed and how much it has. It's a good read, so I encourage you to read it. He looks mostly at TO%, offensive efficiency, and free throws, in terms of stats.I figured I'd add a few more stats in there, just cuz.

The best way to statistically compare this year and last year for Greivis is to look at a similar stretch of games from last season. A reader pointed out that Vasquez went through a rough period not unlike this one last year, and it would make sense to see just how similar they were.

First up, here's last year's rough stretch - from the period between the heinous Morgan State loss to the Boston College loss, seven games later:

As you can see, he waswas markedly worse in every single category; at least 10% worse than his season average. Maryland brunt the worst of it in their record, as this was easily the hardest stretch of the season - after all, they lost to Morgan State.

Now, to this year's:

Statistically, this isn't all that bad. He's been worse in some aspects - rebounds, points, and turnovers; all very important. However, that could be due to another reason: the emergence of Sean Mosley and Jordan Williams as the main scorers and rebounders, for example. (I got nothing for turnovers).

But, even in this rough stretch, he's been dishing the rock even more than he did during the good stretches of last season, putting up more than half-an-assist per game, which is a pretty nice 14% increase.

The turnovers are a problem, but the good news is that his assists are staying up and the points are pretty similar. I don't think you can say one slump has been worse than the other - both have been awful for his usual standard, but neither particularly moreso than the other.

That's good news, actually: Greivis has gone through a stretch just this bad, and came out of it better in the long run. Maybe the same will happen this time.

Of course, stats can't see, and that's the problem. Maybe it's a grass is greener syndrome, but it seems to me his play has been a bit worse recently than it was last year, even in that terrible stretch. He's less in control, taking worse shots, and seems to have lost something from the end of last season. The swagger, if you can believe it, has diminished.

Luckily for Maryland, he has a few weeks to figure it out.

ACC Power Rankings: 12.8

MRickman84 — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 16:30:14 -0000

So this probably should have been done yesterday, but I really want to get in the habit of doing power rankings throughout the season. UNC occupies the top spot this week, with Duke coming in second, as both are coming off tough losses last week to strong opponents.

Let's take a look at who is where after the jump...

1.) UNC-- [W vs. Michigan State, L vs. Kentucky] UNC is getting better as was expected. The young guys are playing well and Larry Drew II looks a lot more comfortable. I'm still concerned about the Heels' bench, as Strickland looks a little lost out there and Henson just does not know what to do with his body. The Wear twins are eating up a ton of minutes without a lot of productivity. Tyler Zeller is a great player for them though and really makes the perfect sixth man. UNC gets another tough test when they head to Dallas to play Texas at the Cowboys stadium next week.

2.) Duke -- [L vs. Wisconsin, W vs. St. John's] I thought this Duke team was supposed to be able to shoot? Kyle Singler is looking average at best so far this year and is taking a LOT of shots. You know what you're getting out of Jon Scheyer week in and week out and that is a great stabilizer. Andre Dawkins has been spectacular so far and we are going to be seeing a lot more of him as Duke enters ACC play. Duke's big weakness is still down low--Zoubek and Thomas are just bad, but the Plumlees work hard and are good players.

3.) GT [W vs. Siena, W vs. USC] The Jackets were left out of the Challenge this year because of their finish last season, and that really is a shame as I believe they would have won their matchup and turned the tide for the ACC. Instead, Tech put a whooping on Siena and USC last week. GT is stellar in the frontcourt with Lawal, Peacock and Favors, but losing Iman Shumpert is going to be sidelined for 3-6 weeks with a knee injury.

4.) Clemson [L vs. Illinois, W vs. South Carolina] Clemson is looking like bi-polar Clemson again, surprise! This is a good, solid basketball team. They have 5 players averaging at least 9 points per game and Trevor Booker is almost averaging a double-double (13 and 9). Their problem is that they just lose focus (as seen by the terrible collapse against Illinois). I think they are a better team than Georgia Tech, but they just can't pass them until they show some consistency.

5.) Miami [W vs. Minnesota, L vs. BC] Yes, I know they lost their first conference game. But it was very close and came down to the buzzer. They picked up a great non-con win over Minnesota, but still have not really been challenged other than their last two contests. Dwayne Collins is very good, but there's a lot of pressure on him coming into conference play since two of Miami's three strong guards are newcomers (Malcolm Grant from Villinova and freshman Durand Scott.) James Dews can get it done too, but we will see just how much the 'Canes miss Jack McClinton after the 1st of the year.

6.) Wake Forest [L vs. Purdue, W vs. Gonzaga] After a disappointing loss at home to William & Mary, the Deacs took to the road for two very tough tests. After a hard-fought loss to Purdue, the Deacs looked like they finally clicked in a win over Gonzaga at the Kennel. If the Demon Deacons can use this as a momentum builder, they could enter the new year at 10-2. They will be tested by UNC-W, who has played some good teams tough, as well as Richmond, which received votes in the polls this week. Freshmen C.J. Harris and Ari Stewart are looking like the real deal, but the Deacs absolutely need to get consistency from their bigs and from Al-Farouq Aminu.

7.) Virginia Tech [W vs. Iowa, W vs. Georgia] I like VT. They're better than they look on paper, and their loss to Temple is not a bad one--the Owls almost pulled off the upset against Georgetown a few games ago. They easily could finish anywhere between 6th and 10th, but the combo of Malcolm Delaney and Jeff Allen should be good for at least 6 conference wins.

8.) Maryland [W vs. Indiana, L vs. Villanova] I've seen Maryland play 4 times now this year and I'm sorry, I just don't think they are very good. Greivis Vasquez takes way too many ill-advised shots and he is shooting 32%. Sean Mosley and Landon Milbourne are the strong points to this team and Eric Hayes keeps them calm sometimes, but they aren't deep and I'm not sold on their front court. The Terps were a hot pick to start the season, but they have to prove something to me before they can move up the board.

9.) Boston College [W vs. Michigan, W vs. Miami] Here we go again. It's the same old story every year. BC looks sparse on paper and then Al Skinner does a great job coaching his team to overachieve. It'll probably happen again this year and their last two wins are a big indicator of this. Reggie Jackson could be a great player, and BC gets bumped up a spot just from his nasty dunk against the 'Canes (on a terrible offensive foul call in the last 30 seconds) and his clutch FTs to seal the win. Raji, Jackson, Trapani is a great combo and they get a good effort out of Josh Southern too.

10.) Florida State [L vs. Ohio State, W vs. FIU] Florida State looked downright ugly against Ohio State. And downright ugly against Florida. But that win against Marquette was big, so they have that in them. Alabi, Singleton and Kitchen are a nice 1-2-3, but the 'Noles need to be getting more out of Xavier Gibson and Ryan Reid.

11.) NC State [L vs. Northwestern, W. vs Marquette] After their loss to Northwestern, I didn't think at all that the Wolfpack would beat Marquette. It was the furthest thing from my mind. State is 6-1, but they are a mess and there is just not much there.

12.) Virginia [L vs. Penn State, L vs. Auburn] Hey, at least Virginia has beaten Cleveland State, something Wake wasn't able to do last year. Sylven Landesberg is a heck of a player, but when your next two leading scorers are Mike Scott and Sammy Zeglinski, there's a problem there. Virginia is not very good.

Maryland Falls to Hot-Shooting Villanova in BB&T Classic, 95-86

Ben Broman — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 02:57:14 -0000

More photos » by Nick Wass - AP

I'd like to introduce to Maryland's new superstar.

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Maryland won't have a signature out-of-conference win this year. Villanova got one of their first convincing wins of the year over the Terps, doing it with a lights-out first half performance.

Villanova made their killing in the first half, shooting an ungodly 50% from 3 and taking 22 of them - for those bad at math, that's 11 made threes in just one half. They paired that with a 10 board rebounding advantage - 26 to 16 - with 13 offensive rebounds.

Give Maryland credit, though: they fought back hard, and cut the 11-point halftime-deficit down to 3 eventually. They couldn't get over the hump, but both defense and rebounding improved in the second half.

Make no mistake, they actually played pretty well. They were, for the most part, effective and relatively efficient. They shot exactly 50% for the game, and many of Villanova's threes were difficult to cover, as they were from NBA range. I'm not saying Maryland looked great, but they weren't as bad as the score might've indicated, and that didn't even look all that bad. Too bad no one on the selection committee will know that.

Of course, there were major problems to look at. Villanova had more than 20 offensive rebounds and took an extra 24 shots - 24! That's pretty terrible even for zone defense, which is naturally conducive to offensive rebounds. It needs to be worked on.

Greivis Vasquez is still troublesome with his inconsistent performance. Gone, at least for the moment, is the Vasquez from last year. He's been replaced by someone whose shooting - and, actually, entire game - is decidedly average. He is much more reminiscent of sophomore and even freshman Vaz than junior Vaz. Maryland needs him to be sensational as he was last year, and he just hasn't brought it. He fouled out today, and you could see how much it hurt him. He needs to turn it around some time soon.

Luckily for Maryland, they have found a replacement, and his name is Sean Mosley. He had 24 points to lead all players in scoring and showcased a complete game - his jumper was good, he hit his layups, played outstanding defense, and was heady and smart. He should challenge for postseason ACC accolades if he plays like this the rest of the year, which is pretty similar to how's he played all of this year so far. Sugar Sean was simply amazing tonight.

Jordan Williams was just as encouraging. He needs to work on plenty - conditioning, some tighter technique, more aggression (that is, dunking) - but he looked surprisingly good against a solid big man in Antonio Pena. He put up his first double double in the best competition he's seen all year, and had a surprising 19 points and 12 rebounds. He's officially earned a starting spot - Dino's status should be irrelevant. I'm relatively confident that he wouldn't put up a double-double against the #3 team in the nation (though I could be wrong). Regardless, you can't take Williams out now.

It was a loss, but a promising one. Maryland never gave up, kept pressing, and almost pulled off a win over one of the best teams in the country. They won't get all the advantages from it, but they can rest easy knowing they played well against a very good team. You always want a win, but this was a loss I can swallow.

The negative, of course, is that there's no more big time OOC win for Maryland. First off, they can't have any more bad OOC losses - no Morgan State this year. They'll also have to have a better ACC year than last year. They're capable of both, but there's not a lot of room for error.