Question:

Answer: if you're Maryland, Brown can help you shake off a bit of post-holiday rust.

After enjoying a little time away with family and friends -- and more than a week since their last game -- the Terps looked a little rusty in the early going of today's noon-time tip-off at Comcast.

Hosting the Brown Bears in the opening game of this year's Terrapin Classic, Maryland got off to a slow start, falling behind early (but only by a small margin) before shaking off the rust, and then taking a 37-24 lead into the locker room at half time.  The Terps looked more like a well-oiled machine after the break, holding the Bears to a mere 12 points in the second half, while scoring 39 of their own. And that was with minutes being spread very evenly among all 8 active Maryland players. Final score: 76-36. 

The second game of today's double-bill was literally for the birds, as the Lady Hawks of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore took on the Hawks of Hartford.  Speaking of rust, UMES didn't score their first point until 9:39 left in the first half! Ouch. But in all that time, Hartford had only managed to put 10 points up on the board. A real offensive battle. Hartford led at the half 26-15, at which point the BCs decided that we'd seen enough basketball for one day. Hartford eventually won, 53-38, and will face the Terps tomorrow at 4:30 PM in the title game of the Terrapin Classic. 

For those driving to Comcast on Saturday, please keep in mind that the men's team will be playing at 12:30 PM, so don't arrive too early for the women's game or you may have to pay to park!

Go Terps . . . Beat the Hawks!

Due to Technical Difficulties . . .

The BCs confess we didn't get to see, hear or follow via live stats as much of tonight's Terps game against the Delaware Blue Hens as we had planned, or would have liked.  (In fact, there were a few bad words uttered in the BCs' household . . . fortunately, no children were present.)

What we do know is that Maryland was playing on the road, in Newark, in front of a sell-out (record-setting) crowd.  We also know that everybody's All-American pick, Elena Delle Donne, did play tonight for the Hens, after missing several games due to a recurrance of  Lyme disease. 

Maryland led at the break by 7; but, frankly, we have very little idea what transpired in the first half. Technical difficulties!  The second half was a little better.  We actually had a working audio feed for most of it:  The Terps pulled out to a double-digit lead; Delaware closed to 3 on an EDD 3-pointer about 8 minutes into the second period.  But, after that too-close-for-comfort Delaware run, the Terps regrouped and simply continued to create separation (as a top 10 team should) throughout the final twelve mintues.  At game's end, the Terps had won, 69-53.

Maryland was led by their dynamic duo of Tianna Hawkins and Alyssa Thomas. (What else is new?) Both added double-doubles, in more ways than one. T-Hawk finished with 16 points (hitting 50% of her FGs) and pulled down 16 boards.  AT, meanwhile, scored 13 points and grabbed 13 rebounds.  16-16, 13-13, double-double-doubles!  Game-high scoring honors, though, went to EDD, who notched 19 points (pretty impressive for a player just returning to her team's line-up) but she only hit 7-23 from the floor. 

The Terps also got a big bump from Katie Rutan (or "ROO-tin" as the radio announcers called her) off the bench tonight.  Katie was 3-5 from behind the arc (60%, wow!) and 5-8 overall.  She finished with 13 points.  Also, freshman PG Chloe Pavlech had another "veteran" outing: 5 assists, 3 steals, 8 points . . . and only a single turnover!  Talk about "stepping up"!  We know it's a sports cliche, but this kid has really "stepped up" her game since Brene and Laurin were lost for the season.

We know there was a bus-load of Rebounders and a whole lot of other Maryland fans who traveled to Newark for tonight's game.  A 16-point win should make that drive back down I-95 a whole lot more pleasant.  Maybe when they get home, they can add a few words, since we saw and heard so little of this one.  We know it ended well for Maryland, however, and that's the most important thing.

Luckily, next time out, the Terps play at home.  So, barring a traffic issue or some other unexpected problem, the BCs should get to see Maryland's next game . . . live. No technology involved.

Mystics To Announce New GM/Head Coach

No doubt many of our readers received an email this afternoon from the Mystics stating that tomorrow, Tuesday, at 4 PM, the team will be holding a press conference to announce the hiring of a new General Manager/Head Coach.  The announcement will be streamed live on the Mystics' website. 

From information the BCs have received, every indication is that the person to be announced tomorrow will be Mike Thibault, former Head Coach of the Connecticut Sun. If Mike is introduced tomorrow, remember, you read it here first!

Assuming it does turn out to be Mike, the BCs believe his hiring will be a big step in the right direction for the Mystics, as the franchise tries to climb out of the deep hole it dug for itself over the past two seasons.  Mike is an experienced, highly successful (and respected) coach who knows the WNBA inside and out.  In his 10 years as Head Coach of the Sun, Thibault won just about everything there was to win except the brass ring of a WNBA Championship, which is why, as Mechelle Voepel wrote on ESPN, the Sun cut him loose earlier this fall.

Hopefully, Connecticut's loss will turn out to be Washington's gain. We're not expecting any overnight miracles. But a little hope, a little something to look forward to this summer . . . well, that's a good feeling (for a change).

A Very Special Night

 

 



When the Terps raced out to an early 18-0 lead against the George Mason Patriots tonight, that was a not-too-subtle hint that the entertainment value of this game was not going to come from watching a tightly contested basketball match.  (Nor, in truth, was that what the BCs expected as we drove to Comcast this evening.)

But that doesn't mean today's game wasn't fun . . . or special.  It was!  Both!  In fact, there were any number of special highlights from Maryland's blowout win, 90-40.  For us, these four in particular really stand out:

1.   Every Terp played double-digit minutes and every Terp scored at least 5 points; 5 of the 8 Terps finished in double figures!  That's called team basketball.

2.  With 16:33 left in the second half, Tianna Hawkins, the ACC's leading scorer, had outscored George Mason all by herself, 24-22.  (At that point, the score was 54-22.)  It's not all that unusual to see a star outpacing the opponent early in a game, but it's quite an accomplishment when it happens this late in the game.  Tianna finished with game-high scoring honors, 27 points in only 26 minutes.  Had T-Hawk played more, who knows, maybe she could've outscored the Patriots solo.

3.  At halftime, the Terps hosted their inaugural Teddy Bear Toss.  Hundreds of adorable new Teddy Bears, thrown by the fans, rained down onto the court, where they were quickly collected and bagged by a very efficient arena crew.  The Teddies collected will be given to children at Johns Hopkins Hospital. What wonderful gifts they'll make for all those kids!  The BCs hope that, with earlier notice to fans next season about this event, the Terps will truly be able to Fill the Floor . . . perhaps with thousands of Teddies! (But no Pandas, please.)

4.  Last, and definitely not least . . . tonight, the extraordinarily talented All-Everything Alyssa Thomas recorded a triple-double (11 points, 12 boards, 11 assists).  WOW!!!   Double-digit scoring, double-digit rebounding, and double-digit assists!  That's simply astounding.  What a performance.  Congratulations, AT!!!

This is only the second time in Maryland history that this amazing stat line hat-trick has been accomplished.   Ironically, the player who earned the Terps' first triple-double, Marissa Coleman, back on December 2, 2006, was in the house tonight as the player who now wears Marissa's old number ("25") joined her in the record books.

Sadly, as much fun as we had this evening, the BCs won't be seeing the Terps again for awhile, since their next home game is not until December 28th against Brown, in the opener of the annual Terrapin Classic.  Before that contest, the Terps play on the road twice: on December 11 at Towson, and on December 20 at Delaware. We're sure many other Maryland fans will be making those roadtrips, but the BCs will follow the action on gametracker.  (We just love those little triangular figures.)

As for the Terps players, in addition to those two away games, they also need to finish their holiday shopping and squeeze in some final exams before they return to Comcast just before New Year's.   A busy, busy December indeed for these young women.  Let's hope it's a successful one.

Go Terps . . . Beat the Tigers!

Photo Credit: DC BasketCases

Three Freshmen, a Walk-on, and a Transfer Walk Into a Bar ...

The bartender asks them, "How did you stay so cool tonight when the rest of your team fouled out?" They answered, "No problem . . . we were surrounded by fans."

Well, Chloe, Tierney, Malina, Sequoia and Katie weren't really in a bar this evening.  But with 1:44 left in the game against UVA tonight, three freshmen, one walk-on, and one transfer were the only five Maryland players still permitted to be on the court, as all three of the Terps' veterans, Alicia DeVaughn, Tianna Hawkins, and Alyssa Thomas had, indeed, fouled out.

And, quite frankly, given how whistle-happy the officials were in the second half, had the game gone on for about another minute, it's quite possible that Tierney, who had four fouls, would have fouled out as well.  The short-handed Terps came very, very close to playing 4 on 5, something we've never seen before and certainly hope we never see this season. (But it could happen.)

Fortunately, 8, 7, 6, make that 5 were enough tonight against the Cavaliers, as Maryland easily won their ACC season opener, 79-55.  The first half of the game was fun, and the half-time performance by the incredibly talented Wheaton Dance Twirlers was great, but the game's second-half foulfest made for a seemingly interminable final 20 minutes of playing time (about 75 minutes of real time).  But the good news is that Maryland is now 1-0 in the ACC.

The Terps' Dynamic Duo of Tianna Hawkins and Alyssa Thomas shared game-high scoring honors, with 20 apiece.  Each also had a double-double, 12 and 11 boards, respectively. Maryland's third veteran, Alicia DeVaughn, grabbed 10 rebounds of her own, to go along with 8 points. Of course, all three also "notched" 5 fouls and ended the game on the bench. So that left three freshman, a walk-on, and a transfer to finish out the game.

And those five did an admirable job, not just in the final minutes, but all game long.  Rookie Tierney Pfirman scored 17 points (and would've pushed her total higher if she had hit layups with the same efficiency as she hit her long-range jumpers).  PG Chloe Pavlech, who was so solid against UConn, put on another veteran-like performance  . . . 6 assists, 3 steals and only 2 TOs in 35 minutes of playing time.

With the injuries the Terps have suffered, it's going to be a challenging season for Coach B and her very short bench.  But, short bench or not, tonight we saw that this team has a will to win that is going to make them a formidable opponent for every team in the ACC.  This should be a very interesting -- and exciting -- conference season.

Next up: a non-conference game against the George Mason Patriots at 6 PM on Saturday at Comcast.  This is the first (annual?) Teddy Bear Toss game.  Bring a new Teddy Bear and throw it onto the court at half-time!  The Teddies will be given to children at Johns Hopkins Hospital.  What a great idea . . . especially now, during the holiday season!  (Petey says to tell you: "Teddies Only!  Do Not Throw Any Pandas!")

Go Terps . . .  Beat the Patriots!

PENULTIMATUM

Thou wilt be leaving the ACC for the Big Ten Conference

But thou wilt not be making this move until July 2014

Therefore, thou shalt play two more complete seasons of ACC Basketball, starting tomorrow (Thursday, 7 PM at Comcast) against UVA

Hark, it is written that this is (kinda) weird, but thou shalt do thy best to forget about the B1G for now and focus entirely on the ACC

Go forth, Terps, and Beat the Cavs!

Don't Give Up

The BCs are really proud of the Terps tonight.  No, they didn't win the game.  But, in the true spirit of the Jimmy V Classic, they fought hard, and they never gave up.

On the road, in an arena full of vocal blue-clad UConn fans, with a national TV audience looking in, the short-handed Maryland team, whose starting line-up has twice this fall been thrown into disarray by season-ending injuries, gave the #2 ranked team in the country its best shot, before falling 63-48.

A 15-point loss may seem like a lot, until you look at how the Huskies have performed prior to tonight. In their six previous games this season, UConn has scored an average of 92 points; their average margin of victory has been 49 points; they beat two other top-25 teams by more than 30 points each (#16 Texas A&M lost by 31 and #14 Purdue lost by 34).  Maryland, reduced to a bench of just eight players, gave the likely Final-Four-bound Huskies their most competitive game of the year.  There's no reason for the never-give-up Terps to hang their heads. 

And now that this game is behind them, Coach B and her players can begin their most important job --  proving to the rest of the ACC that Eight is Enough.  Conference play tips off on Thursday against UVA.

Go Terps . . . Beat the Cavs!