Great Expectations. Maryland didn't win the National Championship last season by dominating ACC opponents in conference play. They eked out four overtime wins --- 3 against lower ranked teams --- during the regular season and almost lost to Georgia Tech in their first game of last year's ACC tournament.

But winning the Big One and returning all starters has created expectations for the Terrapin team that didn't exist a year ago. So when Maryland struggles as it did tonight in the first half against an NCAA-bound Seminole team in Tallahassee, we have the tendency to wonder, "what's wrong?" Maybe all that's wrong is that the players put too much pressure on themselves to live up to the hype and the fans expect dominating performances night in and night out.

To hear Nancy Lieberman and (our own) Pam Ward wax poetic about the Terps in the early part of tonight's ESPN2 broadcast, you would think that Maryland's players could leap tall buildings in a single bound. Instead, their game (particularly in the first half when they went into the locker room down by a point) was very much down-to-earth. Half Number 2 showed increased form and increased intensity, but was hardly "dominating." However, when it counted, Maryland did what good teams do --- they put the game away in the final minutes, winning 74-60. Lang and Harp each had double-doubles, while the three other starters were all in double figures. Once again, Shay's senior leadership showed through, as she added five assists to her 12 points (while turning the ball over only once).

After seeing the Terps at UVA last Sunday, and watching the game tonight, the BasketCases think it may be time for the team and its fans to take a deep breath . . . lower expectations just a bit --- embrace the role of underdog facing the number one team in the nation --- have some fun, make some noise and treat the Blue Devils to Hell-in-a-Shell on Sunday at Comcast.