Even for die hard Maryland basketball fans, Saturday’s game against Georgia Southern may have been too much of a snoozer to watch, with much more significant college football games happening simultaneously. However, while these non-conference games may not provide much in terms of excitement for fans, so far they have demonstrated one thing: comfort.
Comfort in knowing the Terps can utilize ten players without worry and still beat an inferior opponent by 17 points. Comfort in playing Alex Len only 17 minutes, yet still out-rebounding the Eagles by 22. Most of all, comfort Maryland has one of the most balanced teams in the ACC, leading to four straight victories by an average of more than 16 points.
The non-conference part of an ACC basketball schedule is usually filled with weak opponents, giving teams some time to work out various kinks before vigorous conference schedules later in the season. However, taking a look back at last year’s schedule, Maryland still struggled against “weaker” opponents. A six-point win against Florida Gulf Coast, a three-point win against Mount St. Mary’s, a four-point win against Florida International and a five-point win against Radford were all games played at home a typical Maryland team would have likely won by 15 points. We know last year’s squad wasn’t typical, and thus weren’t surprised a team with seven scholarship players couldn’t put opponents away.
This year, it seems to be the exact opposite. Replacing the one-man offense of Terrell Stoglin is an unselfish attack of a core of ten guys that have all played in every game so far this season. Most fans would be pleasantly surprised to know Maryland is fourth in the nation in assists per game. Yes, you read that right. In the nation.
Last year’s team struggled not because they lacked significant talent, but because they lacked depth. This season, coach Mark Turgeon has been able to mix up his five on-court players until he gets a combination he likes for a particular stretch. With seven scholarship players, when one or two are having an off game, there are no alternatives. With ten dependable players, foul trouble is avoided, poor shooting streaks mitigated and fatigue monitored, all while maintaining a high level of play.
Meanwhile, many of the core are freshmen, visibly improving on a game-to-game basis. With Dez Wells and Len having quiet nights on Saturday, freshman Charles Mitchell earned his first career double-double with 11 rebounds and 13 points on 50 percent shooting. Against Long Island-Brooklyn, freshman Seth Allen scored 19 points on 70 percent shooting. Those performances from a backup forward and point guard leave fans salivating over what this team can develop by March. And by the manner Maryland has handled its non-conference opponents thus far, those eager fans may not be far off.
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