One and DoneGreensboro, N.C. . . . Maryland and Georgia Tech finished the ACC regular season with identical records, separated for tie-break purposes only by Kim Rodgers's buzzer-beater that won the game for the Terps at Tech.
And solely by virtue of that tie-breaker, Maryland earned a bye yesterday in Round 1 of the ACC Tourney here in Greensboro . . . while the Yellow Jackets did not. Instead, yesterday morning, GT faced Virginia Tech in an early game that quickly turned into a full-fledged rout. The Jackets barely worked up a sweat as they blew the Hokies out of the arena. So, despite playing that early round, their starters were well rested when GT took the court against the Terps at 11 AM this morning in the ACC quarterfinals.
Let's get right to the bottom line. The Terps lost, 64-70, and that early exit means their ACC season is now over.
It always makes us sad when the team we support and the young ladies who play for Maryland lose a game . . . particularly an important one like today's. But what makes us doubly sad is we left the arena feeling like the Terps had plenty of chances to win today.
In the early going, the game indeed looked like one between two teams that had been separated only by a tie-breaker. It was one of those back and forth battles; a one possession contest for most of the first half. Then GT pulled away late in the first period (though by single digits), only to see the Terps counter with a run (led by super frosh Alyssa Thomas) that wiped out the Jackets' lead and sent Maryland into the locker room at half-time with a one-point lead.
After the break, the Terps continued their strong performance. Thanks to a couple of big 3-pointers by Kimmie and additional scoring by other Maryland players, the Terps built an 11-point lead in less than 4 minutes of the second half. Too bad the game is 40 minutes and not 25.
After that early final-period run, the next 10 minutes or so were All-Tech. Maryland missed shots, turned the ball over, was called for fouls. As fans, we sat helpless watching the wheels come off . . . seeing GT wipe out the entire 11-point Maryland lead and then add 9 more. A 20-point swing in favor of the Jackets. The Terps players and coaches continued to work hard to close the gap. But Maryland never got closer than 4.
Congratulations to Georgia Tech. Early exit for Maryland.
We're glad there are no seniors on the Maryland team. We know the players are upset. We know they'll all be looking for a chance to redeem themselves next year. And we plan to be back to see them do it. This is a very young team. We're confident they'll learn from today's not-so-fun experience.
For now, we hope they'll put today behind them, and get ready for the NCAA Tournament. The Terps are hosting the first two rounds at Comcast, starting on March 20. We hope you have your tickets!
posted by BasketCases @ 5:06 PM
18 comments
18 Comments:
That game sure showed how defense wins games. The full court press was awsome. MD learned from that, I hope!
How do the BCs think this loss will affect the Terps bracket placement? What seeding do you think they'll get?
4 seed at best....5 seed at worst
Mystics question: Curious if anyone knows why Harding is demanding a trade?
We've heard hints from more than one source that Harding has asked to be traded. We don't know whether anything will come of this.
-- BC
What?? Why?? Gosh, that would be terrible for the Mystics.
Do the BC's know why marissa Coleman never plays for her team in Hungary? Is she injured?
Hadn't heard the Harding trade rumors. Is there anything up with Katie that might be contributing? Is Linds animal friendly, and get upset about the racoon dinner?
I was wondering the same thing about Coleman. Especially after some tweets from her indicating she may have an injury. I also read some quotes from Sopron coach saying she had a hip injury, but there wasn't anymore details.
As for the Harding rumors, I really really really hope this isn't true!
Unfortunately nothing surprises me from the Washington sports teams. I used to believe the Mystics were different in terms of treatment of fans and athletes, but alas, not the case. With Monique out, Nakia gone, and if Lindsey leaves....it will be another "interesting" season.
I'm hoping the trade rumors are just a way for Lindsey to get a better contract. I certainly don't blame her. She deserves a long term contract with the maximum salary. I just hope she gets it with the Mystics.
I thought it was interesting when Trudi said a few months ago that one of her priorities was to resign Katie and Lindsey. That was a pretty public way to start off a new job as GM. If we don't resign them and they sign with other teams, what does that say about her as a GM?
Well According to Greg's blog, the Mystics have a major annoucement coming the beginning of April. Maybe it will be Lindsey and Katie signing, maybe it will be Cheryl Ford. I'm gona wait and see and give the new coach a chance.
Why wait until April 1? It must be an April fools prank, since the organization does treat it's fan base like fools1
If you're Harding, and you've seen what has gone on with the Mystics since the end of last season, you can't possibly be in any hurry to sign a long term deal with the organization.
Plus, Plank and Taylor were the two people in the league who believed in her when they traded for her, so the way that all went down may matter more to her than it would most players.
Long story short, her basketball career is probably better off if she doesn't sign with the Mystics, even if she has to sit out the season, than if she's stuck in DC until she's 30 or 31.....or longer, given that she's just watched the Mystics put a core designation on a 37 year old.
Yeah, I agree, why wait until April 1st if it's the fact that you have resigned Harding or Smith. Doesn't make sense. Harding not signing is a really BIG deal if she doesn't. You need a great PG to be a great team in this league. She is a great PG.
Had to tell my Mystics agent that I'm not renewing. He seemed surprised. Really he did.
Why aren't you renewing? If it's because you are mad/upset/dissapointed at the Mystics org, I get it, but all you are doing is hurting the players. The WNBA is hanging on by a thread. If you care about women's bball, you have to support the teams, no matter what in my opinion. This isn't the NBA. The WNBA could completely fold at any time.
Dear Anonymous,
Back on November 2nd, we wrote the following:
" . . .the WNBA is a business. (It’s not a charity.) As in other businesses, employees of mismanaged businesses are often the people most affected by the poor decisions made by their bosses. WNBA players are no exception.
We believe that every fan has a right to decide whether they wish to pay for the entertainment being marketed by the Mystics business. If fans feel the recent actions of Mystics management have made them so unhappy that they no longer wish to spend their money on the product the Mystics are selling, we support that decision. And we feel very strongly that any fan who reaches that decision should NOT be made to feel guilty about it.
Likewise we support the decision of those fans who decide they want to continue buying tickets to support the players or for whatever reasons are important to them. Again, it's an individual decision.
If the fallout from the current situation ends up having an adverse impact on the players, the responsibility falls squarely on the shoulders of Mystics management, not on any individual fan."
We still believe that.
--BC
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