Terps Fans . . . Start Your Engines!

Finally, what we've all been waiting for -- tonight (Friday), Maryland Madness is upon us, the formal kickoff to the new basketball season. Yay!

And what a "new" season, it is. Just when we managed to get familiar with all the newbies from last year's team, along comes this season's line-up, which includes six (1-2-3-4-5-6!) freshmen. If Maryland isn't the youngest team in D-I ball, it's certainly one of the youngest. It might take oldies like us a few games to figure out who's who. But that's part of the fun of following a great college program. New players, returning players, graduating players . . . young ladies moving on (well prepared) to their adult lives.

OK, too much sappy digression. Getting back to the team: five new recruits. The #2 ranked recruiting class in the nation. The Fab Five seemed like a good nickname for the new additions . . . that is until Coach B added a walk-on!

The five highly-touted recruits joining this year's Terps team: Whitney Bays (6'2" F), Natasha Cloud (6' G), Alicia DeVaughn (6'4" C), Laurin Mincy (6' G), and Alyssa Thomas (6'2" F). And let's not overlook our walk-on, Sequoia Austin (5'5" G ), who arrives with a pretty impressive pedigree herself. Read more here. A big BasketCases welcome to the Fab Five, Super Six . . . we can't wait to see you take the court! (And even more young talent is on the way . . . the Terps just got a verbal commit from an outstanding local player, Brene Moseley from Paint Branch H.S. who will be arriving in College Park less than a year from now.) And welcome back to all the returning sophomores, juniors and seniors. No seniors! Maybe Senior Night this season could honor AARP-card-carrying "senior" bloggers. Just a thought.

BTW, tonight's Madness (which will be televised by Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic starting at 9PM, and available on line at umterps.com at around 7 PM) is only the beginning of a great weekend for fans of the Terps. On Sunday, the team will be holding its annual open practice for members of the Rebounders booster club. If you haven't already joined this fabulous group of Maryland fans -- you should! And you can easily do so by following this link. This group isn't only there to support the players, but also to support the entire women's basketball family, including coaches and staff. When there's a need for support . . . the Rebounders are there for them. You can count on us. Fear the T!

Unfortunately, some of us are over-scheduled and "stuff" sometimes interferes with basketball. This is one of those times for the BCs. While we have some fun-time with family, as well as other enjoyable activities, planned this weekend, we're still disappointed that we can't be in two places at once . . . which is our way of breaking the news that we'll be missing both Madness and the open practice. *insert unhappy face here*

But forget about us, here's another cool thing about this new season (besides the great returning players and Super Six) . . . Digital Ticketing! Tickets will now have barcodes, which means that season ticketholders will be able to transfer tickets online. So, if you find yourself in a situation similar to the one the BCs face this weekend, you'll be able to just send your tickets to a friend over the web . . . your seats will be kept warm and Comcast will remain a place to Fear the Turtle.

And speaking of Fearing the Turtle, here's an important ticket notice: tickets for Maryland's Nov. 16 "road" game at Georgetown against the Hoyas go on sale this Monday, Oct. 18th. You can buy them online via the G-town website; for more information, click here. (On Monday, the web page at that link will have a "buy tickets here" box.) Get your tickets! Let's Rock the Red at McDonough Arena!! Georgetown is the highest-ranked team the Terps will face before ACC play opens in January. An early-season win -- on the road (15 whole miles from College Park) -- would be a "Super" way for our young team to send a message that the Terps are back! We are not going to miss this one! Neither should you!

Go Terps!

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Where are they now? . . . . Longtime Mystics fans might be interested to know that "Original Mystic" Murriel Page has just joined the coaching staff at her alma mater, the University of Florida. Murriel was always one of the BCs' favorites. A consummate professional, Murriel turned up every season in shape, ready to play, and did whatever was asked of her without complaint. Those kids at Florida are lucky to have her. Congratulations and good luck to Coach Murriel!

And, speaking of new coaches (and BasketCases' favorites), we've heard that Maryland's own Jade Perry will soon be joining the coaching ranks at a local DC high school. Once we have more details, we'll be sure to pass them along. So congratulations also to Coach Jade!