Season Preview

Gary Williams - Retired

10. Maryland


2010-2011 record: 19-14 (7-9 ACC)


Games against NCAA Tournament teams: 9
Best non-conference game: 12/4 vs. Notre Dame (in Washington, DC)




Projected Starting Five:


C - Berend Weijs (Senior)
F - James Padgett (Junior)
G - Sean Mosley (Senior)
G - Terrell Stoglin (Sophomore)
G - Nick Faust (Freshman)




It feels weird to pick Maryland to finish so low in the ACC.  I can't remember the last time they were in the bottom fourth of the league.  And that is due to two big factors.  First, the loss of Coach Gary Williams.  Williams endured his share of criticism in recent years, but the fact remains that he was a great in-game coach.  His recruiting tapered off a bit, but he almost always over-achieved with the kids that he had.  And his retirement definitely came as a surprise.  The second reason: the early departure of Jordan Williams.  He was a double-double machine last year and was clearly Maryland's best player.  Williams finished with 16.9 points per game and 11.8 rebounds per game.


So where does that leave the Terps?  They brought in Mark Turgeon, who is a very solid coach.  He left Wichita State and Texas A&M in better places than when he got there, making the NCAA Tournament every year he was coach of the Aggies.  Turgeon inherits some talented players, including Terrell Stoglin, who had a good freshman year and was the team's second-leading scorer.  The starting lineup looks a little different for the beginning of the year than it will when we get to 2012.  Pe'Shon Howard, who was a star at times last year, suffered a preseason injury and will miss the first two months of the season.  And Alex Len, a freshman from the Ukraine, must sit out the first 10 games.  Len is being touted as a very solid player and how he performs after the suspension will go a long way to determining what kind of year it is for the Terps.


As it is, the start of the season will probably bring some growing pains.  The frontcourt is very thin and short on talent, although Terps fans are high on the promise of James Padgett.  Maryland usually plays a pretty challenging early season schedule, and this season is no exception.  They will have to face Alabama, Illinois and Notre Dame without Len and Howard.  The ACC schedule is no less forgiving - the Terps have to play two games each against North Carolina and Duke, and only get doormats Boston College and Wake Forest once.


This team will be a work in progress.  It will be up to Turgeon to instill his style on this team.  There probably will be less running up and down the court and more halfcourt sets.  They have a chance to be in the middle of the pack in the ACC if Len and freshman Nick Faust turn out to be solid players.  If not, it will probably be a long year in College Park.