The talented Terps home cooked the Miami Hurricanes 81-59 at the Comcast Center, to take sole possession of the lead in the ACC (who’da thunk it?), and extend their winning string to four games. The contest was never really in question, as the hosts led by 21 shortly before intermission. Greivis Vasquez, who made our All-ACC team, contributed 16, to go with nine assists. Landon Milbourne tossed in 16 on 7-10 shooting. Guard Sean Mosley grabbed seven rebounds in 25 minutes of play. No opponent tallied more than 13.

One might question the strength of the competition, though while the ‘Canes are only 1-5 in the conference, they’re 15-5 overall. The Terps shot 51% (28-55), which speaks to the savvy ball distribution of Vazquez. To their credit, they sank 7 of their 16 efforts from the arc (46.7%). They outrebounded the opposition 35-29. Most importantly, Maryland limited Miami to 38.3% shooting from the floor, and the guests only hit 31% of their 13 three-pointers- the latter a key stat when a team is playing catch up.

Like the recent wins over N.C. State and B.C., this was a rout. Sterner tests will come soon enough. As the team prepares to face formidable Clemson on Sunday in the unfriendly “Pit”, confidence and momentum ride high, and the cushion they have provided themselves in the ACC race will serve them well during lulls. Whatever one thinks of N.C. State, they bounced Duke by 14 last week. For that matter, Miami has beaten Wake. A team can only play who’s in front of them, and recent Terp units have tied their own hands in ACC play by dropping contests to the schools most expected them to defeat. Games against weaker opponents can be as “message” as games vs. stiff comp.

One key to future Terp success is defense, particularly interior defense when they face long opponents UNC and Georgia Tech. If this squad can continue to take well advised shots, and make opponents take poor ones (no mean feat vs. the Heels’ Deon Thompson & Ed Davis, Georgia Tech’s Derrick Favors & Gani Lawal, or the superbly coached Dukies in their motion offense. To compensate, Greivis Vasquez will have to score more than 16 (without trying to do too much, his Achilles’ heels in some of last year’s losses) against those teams. His leadership will receive that first big test at Clemson’s Littlejohn Coliseum.

Tags: potw

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