February 22, 1999
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - No. 5 Maryland (23-4 overall, 11-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) plays host to Clemson (Wed., Feb. 24; 7 p.m.) on senior night and closes out its regular season at Florida State (Sat., Feb 27; 1:30 p.m.) this week. The Terps game against Clemson marks the final home games for seniors Obinna Ekezie, Norman Fields, Laron Profit, Terrell Stokes and Brian Watkins. The Terps enter the week looking to establish a school record for ACC victories in a single season. Maryland won 12 ACC games as it finished in a tie for the regular season conference championship during the 1994-95 season with a 12-4 record. The Terps clinched a second place ACC finish with their 91-60 victory over Georgia Tech on Sunday. Maryland has now finished in the upper half of the ACC for the sixth consecutive season.
FRANCIS ON NAISMITH AWARD FINALIST LIST
Junior guard Steve Francis has been named as one of 10 finalists for the prestigious Naismith Award which is presented annually to the college basketball player of the year. Francis is averaging 16.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and a team-leading 2.8 steals per game. Francis is one of three ACC players and one of only three non-seniors on the list. Francis is joined on the list by Elton Brand and Trajan Langdon of Duke, Mateen Cleaves of Michigan State, Evan Eschmeyer of Northwestern, Richard Hamilton of Connecticut, Andre Miller of Utah, Lee Nailon of Texas Christian, Wally Szczerbiak of Miami (Ohio) and Jason Terry on Arizona.
TERPS CLINCH SECOND PLACE ACC FINISH
Maryland clinched a second place finish in the conference standings and the No. 2 seed in the upcoming ACC Tournament with its victory over Georgia Tech. It marks the second consecutive finish within the top three of the ACC standings and the sixth consecutive upper division conference finish. Maryland most recently finished in first place in the ACC standings during the 1994-95 season. It marks the first time since the 1983 and 1984 seasons that Maryland has finished in the top three of the ACC standings in consecutive seasons.
TERPS APPROACHING RECORD STAY IN TOP 10
Maryland is ranked No. 5 in this weeks Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today polls. It marks the 16th consecutive week during the regular season that the Terps have been ranked in the nations top 10. The Terps were most recently ranked in 16 consecutive polls from Dec. 17, 1974 through April 2, 1975 (the final poll of the season). The Terps were also ranked in the top 10 in a school-record 19 consecutive polls from the preseason poll to begin the 1974-75 season through the season-ending poll of April 2, 1975.
Game Facts and Coverage
Maryland vs. Clemson
Date: Feb. 24, 1999
Tipoff: 7:00 p.m., ET
Site: First National Bank of Maryland Court at Cole Field House (14,500)
Series Data: Maryland leads the all-time series by a 73-42 margin. The Terps defeated the Tigers, 81-79 in overtime, earlier this season on Jan. 24 at Clemson. Maryland has won three of the last four games played in the series.
Television: ESPN national coverage. Mike Patrick calls the play-by-play while Terry Gannon handles the color analysis.
Maryland at Florida State
Date: Feb. 27, 1999
Tipoff: 1:30 p.m., ET
Site: Leon County Civic Center (12,500).
Series Data: Maryland leads the all-time series by an 11-5 margin. The Terps defeated the Seminoles, 107-87, earlier this season on Jan. 27. Maryland has won four consecutive games in the overall series.
Television: Raycom/JP Regional coverage. Ken Broo calls the play-by-play while Gil McGregor handles the color analysis.
Radio: WBAL (1090-AM) in Baltimore and WMAL (630-AM) in Washington, D.C. are flagship stations for the Maryland/Learfield Radio Network. Pregame show 30 minutes prior to tipoff. (Johnny Holliday, play-by-play; Greg Manning, color).
"I believe Marylands Gary Williams may be the coach to beat (for ACC Coach of the Year honors). Williams will also get consideration for national coach of the year. He has done a masterful job."
Mike Sullivan
ESPN.COM
MARYLAND SCHEDULE (23-4, 11-3 ACC)
N4 + Aussie All-Stars W, 90-59
N11 + California All-Stars W, 95-83
N14 Western Carolina W, 113-46
N17 UMBC W, 90-62
N20 Hofstra W, 89-59
N23 Duquesne W, 81-47
N26-28 at Puerto Rico Shootout
N26 at AU Puerto Rico W, 82-32
N27 vs. UCLA (10) W, 70-54
N28 Pittsburgh W, 87-52
D3 * Wake Forest W, 92-69
D6 vs. Stanford (5) W, 62-60
D7 vs. DePaul. W, 92-75
D12 at Kentucky (5) L, 91-103
D19 Princeton (at Balt., Md.) W, 81-58
D23 North Texas W, 132-57
D27 South Carolina State W, 104-70
J3 * Duke (2) L, 64-82
J7 * at Virginia W, 71-66
J10 * NC State W, 94-48
J13 * at North Carolina (7) W, 89-76
J19 * Georgia Tech W, 77-62
J24 * at Clemson W, 81-79 (OT)
J27 * Florida State W, 107-87
J31 * at Wake Forest L, 72-85
F3 * at Duke (2) L, 77-95
F6 * Virginia W, 88-72
F10 * at NC State W, 63-50
F13 * North Carolina (10) W, 81-64
F21 * at Georgia Tech W, 91-60
F24 * Clemson 7:00 p.m.
F27 * at Florida State 1:30 p.m.
M4-7 at ACC Tournament TBA
Charlotte, N.C.
* ACC Game; + exhibition game
1998-99 ACC STANDINGS
(as of Feb. 22, 1999)
ACC Overall
Teams W L PCT W L PCT
Duke 15 0 1.000 27 1 .964
Maryland 11 3 .786 23 4 .852
North Carolina 9 5 .643 21 7 .750
Wake Forest 6 8 .429 15 11 .577
NC State 5 9 .357 16 11 .593
Georgia Tech 5 9 .357 14 13 .519
Florida State 5 9 .357 12 14 .462
Clemson 4 10 .286 15 12 .556
Virginia 4 11 .267 14 14 .500
For information on Maryland basketball contact Chuck Walsh at (301) 314-7065.
TERPS IN THE NATIONAL POLLS
ASSOCIATED PRESS (Feb. 22, 1999)
1. Duke (70) 27-1
2. Auburn 25-1
3. Michigan State (1) 25-4
4. Connecticut 23-2
5. MARYLAND 23-4
6. Stanford 22-5
7. Arizona 20-4
8. St. John's 22-6
9. Cincinnati 23-4
10. Ohio State 21-6
11. Miami (Fla.) 19-5
12. Utah 22-4
13. Kentucky 21-7
14. North Carolina 21-7
15. UCLA 19-7
16. Wisconsin 21-6
17. Col. of Charleston 25-2
18. Iowa 17-7
19. Florida 18-6
20. Indiana 20-9
21. New Mexico 21-6
22. Texas 17-10
23. Purdue 18-9
T24. Syracuse 18-9
Temple 18-8
ESPN/USA TODAY (Feb. 22, 1999)
1. Duke (30) 750
2. Auburn 712
3. Michigan State 683
4. Connecticut 660
5. MARYLAND 626
6. Stanford 560
7. St. Johns 550
8. Cincinnati 534
9. Arizona 512
10. Ohio State 477
11. Kentucky 413
12. Utah 402
13. Miami (Fla.) 382
14. North Carolina 372
15. Wisconson 358
16. UCLA 295
17. Indiana 234
18. Coll. of Charleston 207
19. Iowa 171
20. Syracuse 158
21. New Mexico 132
22. Purdue 111
23. Texas 89
24. Florida 74
25. Minnesota 59
Terps in the Associated Press and
ESPN/USA Today preseason polls
last six years:
AP ESPN/USA
1993-94 NR NR
1994-95 7 14
1995-96 15 19
1996-97 RV RV
1997-98 RV 23
1998-99 6 5
RV - received votes
NO. 5 TERPS DEFEAT GEORGIA TECH, 91-60
ATLANTA, Ga. - Steve Francis scored 22 points and sparked the No. 5 Terrapins on defense with five steals in a 91-60 victory. Maryland, which blew out the Yellow Jackets with a 26-4 run to close the first half, clinched second place in the Atlantic Coast Conference with a week left in the regular season. Laron Profit added 17 points for the Terrapins, who created numerous fast-break chances with a stifling defense that had 11 steals in the first half and 18 for the game. The Terrapins (23-4, 11-3 ACC) eclipsed the school record for steals in a season with 342, breaking the mark of 329 set in 1995-96. Georgia Tech (14-13, 5-9), which lost for the sixth time in seven games, led 27-24 on Alvin Jones hook shot with 5:21 left in the first half. Maryland scored the next 11 points, beating Tech down the court for three straight easy baskets before Francis hit a 3-pointer. Maryland will be the No. 2 seed in the ACC tournament.
NO. 5 MARYLAND 91, GEORGIA TECH 60
Alexander Memorial Coliseum at McDonalds Center - Feb. 21, 1999
Maryland Min FG 3FG FT O-D Reb F A T B S Pts
Profit 25 5-10 1-3 6-8 1-4 5 3 1 1 0 4 17
Morris 29 6-12 1-3 0-0 3-3 6 1 3 1 2 2 13
Baxter 19 3-6 0-0 1-2 1-5 6 3 0 0 1 2 7
Stokes 26 1-4 0-1 0-0 0-2 2 3 5 5 0 2 2
Francis 29 10-12 2-4 0-1 1-4 5 2 4 4 0 5 22
Mardesich 14 1-5 0-0 0-2 0-3 3 1 0 2 0 0 2
Dixon 17 4-8 1-1 3-3 1-4 5 0 4 0 0 1 12
Watkins 14 2-3 0-0 2-2 1-1 2 2 0 1 0 0 6
Miller 15 2-2 0-0 0-2 1-2 3 1 3 2 0 2 4
Cephas 5 0-2 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0
Fields 4 2-2 0-0 0-0 0-1 1 3 0 0 0 0 4
Hahn 3 1-1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2
Team 1-0 1
Totals 200 37-67 5-12 12-20 10-29 39 19 23 16 3 18 91
Ga. Tech Min FG 3FG FT O-D Reb F A T B S Pts
Babul 25 1-7 0-0 2-2 3-5 8 4 1 1 0 2 4
Collier 35 6-14 2-5 1-2 1-3 4 3 0 9 3 3 15
Jones 35 6-14 0-0 6-6 4-10 14 0 4 1 2 0 18
Akins 38 2-12 1-9 0-0 1-0 1 1 4 4 0 2 5
Floyd 27 2-6 1-4 0-0 1-1 2 3 1 5 0 0 5
Vines 27 4-6 1-3 0-1 1-2 3 4 2 1 0 1 9
LaBarrie 9 0-3 0-2 2-4 0-1 1 1 1 3 0 0 2
Kelly 2 0-2 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
Perry 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Kincaid 1 1-1 0-0 0-0 1-0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2
Team 3-1 4
Totals 200 22-65 5-23 11-15 15-23 38 16 13 24 5 10 60
FG% - Maryland, .552. Georgia Tech, .338.
3FG% - Maryland, .417. Georgia Tech, .217.
FT% - Maryland, .600. Georgia Tech, .733.
Technical Fouls: None.
Officials: Jim Burr, John Clougherty, Duke Edsall.
Maryland (23-4, 11-3 ACC) 50 41 - 91
Georgia Tech (14-13, 5-9 ACC) 31 29 - 60
TERPS IN THE LAST 35 GAMES
Maryland has a 29-6 record (82.9 winning percentage) since Feb. 21, 1998. During that period, the Terps have defeated six top 25 teams and four teams which were ranked in the top 10.
DOUBLE-DIGIT ACC VICTORIES
Maryland has won at least 10 ACC games in each of the last two seasons. It marks the first time in school history that the Terps have won double-digit conference games in back-to-back seasons.
Season ACC Record Overall Record
1997-98 10-6 22-11
1998-99 11-3 23-4
TERPS AT HOME THIS SEASON
Maryland has a 12-1 record at First National Bank of Maryland Court at Cole Field House. It marks the sixth consecutive year under head coach
Gary Williams that the Terps won at least 10 home games. Maryland averages 11 wins at home during each of the 10 years of Williams tenure at Maryland. The Terps 12 victories at home this season is the second-most ever by a Williams-coached team.
Season Home Record Overall Record
1993-94 10-3 18-12
1994-95 16-0 26-8
1995-96 11-3 17-13
1996-97 11-3 21-11
1997-98 11-2 21-11
1998-99 12-1 22-4
TERPS 1998-99 POLL HISTORY
AP ESPN
PS 6 5
Nov. 16 6 NP
Nov. 23 5 5
Nov. 30 2 2
Dec. 7 2 2
Dec. 14 5 5
Dec. 21 5 5
Dec. 28 4 4
Jan. 4 5 6
Jan. 11 5 5
Jan. 18 4 4
Jan. 25 4 4
Feb. 1 7 6
Feb. 8 7 7
Feb. 15 5 5
Feb. 22 5 5
WILLIAMS CLOSES IN ON 400 VICTORIES
Head coach
Gary Williams enters the final week of the regular season with a 394-246 career record. (61.6 winning percentage). He needs only six victories to reach the 400 win plateau.
PROBABLE STARTERS FOR MARYLAND....
F #3 Laron Profit (14.0 ppg, 4.4 rpg; 15 points, 4 rebounds vs. Clemson, 1-24-99)
F #44 Terence Morris (15.9 ppg, 7.1 rpg; 26 points, 5 rebounds vs. Clemson, 1-24-99)
F #35 Lonny Baxter (6.1 ppg, 3.4 rpg; 9 points, 2 rebounds vs. Fla. State, 1-27-99)
G #12 Terrell Stokes (6.5 apg, 1.8 spg; 11 points, 5 assists vs. Clemson, 1-24-99)
G #23 Steve Francis (16.1 ppg, 4.2 rpg; 21 points, 5 assists vs. Fla. State, 1-27-99)
....AND TOP RESERVES
G #5 Juan Dixon (8.1 ppg, 2.7 rpg; 10 points, 2 steals vs. Fla. State, 1-27-99)
F #33 Mike Mardesich (3.7 ppg, 3.4 rpg; 10 points, 1 rebound vs. Fla. State, 1-27-99)
G #15 Danny Miller (3.8 ppg, 2.1 rpg; 3 points, 5 rebounds vs. Fla. State, 1-27-99)
F #45 Brian Watkins (2.6 ppg, 1.3 rpg; 7 points, 1 rebound vs. NC State, 2-10-99)
