Men's Basketball Gears Up for 1998-99 Season
6/21/1999 8:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
October 19, 1998
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The University of Maryland mens basketball team, a consensus top-5 preseason selection, continues its practice sessions this week as it prepares for its exhibition season opener vs. the Aussie All-Stars on Nov. 4 in Cole Field House. Head coach Gary Williams tipped off the 1998-99 season at an extremely successful "Midnight Madness" celebration on Friday, Oct. 16. Practice began in earnest on Saturday, Oct. 17. Marylands practice schedule can be obtained by calling the media relations office. Practices are generally closed to the media.
ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE MEDIA DAY
The ACC will hold its annual media day on Sunday, Oct. 25 at the Hilton Charlotte University Place in Charlotte, N.C. The 37th annual event begins with Womens Operation Basketball at 10 a.m. Mens Operation Basketball will begin at 1:30 p.m. Head coach Gary Williams and senior All-America candidates Obinna Ekezie and Laron Profit will attend the event. Players and coaches from all nine schools will be available for interviews. To RSVP for the event, please contact the ACC office at (336) 851-6062.
TERPS OFF TO PUERTO RICO
The Maryland basketball team will spend its Thanksgiving holiday in Bayamon, Puerto Rico playing in the Puerto Rico Shootout. The Terps will make the journey on Tuesday Nov. 24 and play their first round game on Nov. 26 at 5 p.m. Maryland will face American University of Puerto Rico, the host school, in the first round of the tournament. Other first round games include UCLA vs. San Francisco, Xavier vs. Pittsburgh and Kentucky vs. Colorado. Maryland is on the same side of the bracket as UCLA and San Francisco and will face one of those teams in the second round.
PROFIT RECOGNIZED BY STREET AND SMITHS
Maryland senior Laron Profit (Charleston, S.C.) has been selected as a preseason first team All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection by Street and Smiths in its annual preseason yearbook. Profit was an honorable mention All-America by the Associated Press and a third team All-ACC selection as a junior. He averaged a team leading 15.8 points and an ACC leading 2.7 steals per game.
EKEZIE SLATED PRESEASON FIRST TEAM ALL-ACC BY PREVIEW SPORTS
Senior center Obinna Ekezie (Port Harcourt, Nigeria) has been named as a preseason first team All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection by Preview Sports college basketball magazine. Ekezie, who was the fourth leading rebounder at the World Championship tournament this past summer, averaged a career-high 12.8 points last season. The same publication selected Laron Profit as the ACCs top defensive player and Gary Williams as its preseason conference coach of the year.
MIDNIGHT MADNESS A ROUSING SUCCESS
Marylands Midnight Madness celebration, which drew a record crowd of 12,317 to Cole Field House, opened the Terps 1998-99 season with a bang. In addition to a laser light show, the raucous crowd was treated to a number of Terp greats of the past as the NBA lockout gave recent Maryland standouts a chance to attend the fetivities. Those in attendance included Walt Williams of the Portland Trail Blazers, Keith Booth of the World Champion Chicago Bulls and Tony Massenburg of the Vancouver Grizzlies. The idea of Midnight Madness is credited to former Maryland coach Lefty Driesell, who had his players run a mile on the Byrd Stadium track in near-darkness in 1970.
MARYLAND SCHEDULE (0-0, 0-0 ACC)
N4 + Aussie All-Stars 8:00 p.m.
N11 + California All-Stars 8:00 p.m.
N14 Western Carolina 8:00 p.m.
N17 UMBC 8:00 p.m.
N20 Hofstra 8:00 p.m.
N23 Duquesne 8:00 p.m.
N26-28 at Puerto Rico Shootout
N26 Maryland vs. AU Puerto Rico
UCLA vs. San Francisco
Xavier vs. Pittsburgh
Kentucky vs. Colorado
D3 * Wake Forest 8:00 p.m.
D6-7 BB&T Classic/MCI Center
D6 Maryland vs. Stanford 1:30 p.m.
G. Wash vs. DePaul 4:00 p.m.
D7 Consolation/Champ. 6:30/8:30
D12 at Kentucky 8:30 p.m.
D19 Princeton (at Balt.) 9:30 p.m.
D23 North Texas 8:00 p.m.
D27 South Carolina State 8:00 p.m.
J3 * Duke 1:30 p.m.
J7 * at Virginia 8:00 p.m.
J10 * NC State 1:30 p.m.
J13 * at North Carolina 9:00 p.m.
J19 * Georgia Tech 9:00 p.m.
J24 * at Clemson 4:00 p.m.
J27 * Florida State 8:00 p.m.
J31 * at Wake Forest 1:00 p.m.
F3 * at Duke 9:00 p.m.
F6 * Virginia 1:00 p.m.
F10 * at NC State 7:00 p.m.
F13 * North Carolina 4:00 p.m.
F21 * at Georgia Tech 1:30 p.m.
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
1997-98 ACC STANDINGS
-----ACC------ ---Overall----
Teams W L PCT W L PCT
Duke 15 1 .938 32 4 .889
North Carolina 13 3 .833 34 4 .895
Maryland 10 6 .625 21 11 .656
Wake Forest 7 9 .438 16 14 .533
Clemson 7 9 .438 18 14 .563
Georgia Tech 6 10 .375 19 14 .575
Florida State 6 10 .375 18 14 .563
NC State 5 11 .313 17 15 .531
Virginia 3 13 .188 11 19 .367
TERPS BY THE NUMBERS
2
Maryland is one of only two teams in the ACC (Terps and North Carolina) to have played in every NCAA Tournament since 1994.
3
Three starters -- Obinna Ekezie, Laron Profit and Terrell Stokes -- return to Marylands lineup for the 1998-99 season.
3
Senior Laron Profit ranks third in the nation among returning players in steals with 184 for his career.
3
Senior Laron Profit is rated as the third best small forward in the nation by The Sporting News.
4
Marylands frontcourt (Ekezie, Mardesich, Morris, Baxter, Cephas, Profit, Watkins) is rated as the fourth best in the nation by The Sporting News.
5
Maryland is one of only 11 teams in the nation to have played in each of the last five NCAA Tournaments.
5
Maryland has played in a school-record five consecutive NCAA Tournaments.
6
Senior Obinna Ekezie is rated as the sixth best center in the nation by The Sporting News.
7
Senior Laron Profit is one of only seven players in the nation who will play the 1998-99 season who have had 80 or more steals in a single season during their careers.
7
Senior center Obinna Ekezie ranks seventh all-time in school history with 90 blocked shots.
14
Senior guard Terrell Stokes 14 assists against Towson on Nov. 30, 1996 is the terps all-time single-game record.
1,072
Senior Laron Profit ranks 29th in school history with 1,072 career points.
EKEZIE AND PROFIT ON SPORTING NEWS ALL-ACC FIRST TEAM
Senior center Obinna Ekezie and senior guard Laron Profit have been selected as preseason All-ACC players by The Sporting News. Profit was also selected as the best leaper and as the most versatile player in the conference. In its inside dish section, Maryland was selected as the fastest ascending team in the ACC. The editors of the magazine write: "In the 28 years the ACC has conducted a preseason basketball poll, the Terrapins have been picked ahead of North Carolina twice, the last time in 1980. If the media has been paying attention, it should happen again this season."
TERPS RANKED NO. 6 BY DICK VITALE
The Terps are ranked as the nations No. 6 team in Dick Vitales preseason poll. Vitale, college basketballs top color analyst and associate publisher of Dick Vitales College Basketball Yearbook, named senior guard Laron Profit as a third team All-American and also the nations top dunker. Newcomer Steve Francis is tabbed the second-best junior college transfer entering the Division I ranks this season.
DICK VITALES TOP 10
1. Connecticut 2. Duke 3. Stanford 4. Kentucky 5. Michigan State 6. MARYLAND 7. Kansas 8. North Carolina 9. Purdue 10. ArkansasMARYLAND IS...
...One of only 11 teams in the nation and one of only two teams in the ACC that has participated in each of the last five NCAA Tournaments. Only Arizona, Cincinnati, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Purdue, Temple and UCLA join the Terps as teams that have competed in each of the last five NCAA mens basketball tournaments. IN THE SWEET 16...
...Maryland is one of only 11 teams in the nation that has reached the "Sweet 16" round of the NCAA Tournament in at least three of the last five years. The Terps have advanced to the regional semifinals in 1994, 1995 and 1998. Only Arizona, Arkansas, Connecticut, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville, North Carolina, Syracuse, UCLA and Utah join Maryland.
TERPS ARE AMONG ACC EXPERIENCE LEADERS
Maryland returns three starters and five of its top seven statistical leaders from last seasons team. The Terps starting lineup accounts for 204 cumulative career starts (82 by Obinna Ekezie, 62 by Laron Profit and 60 by Terrell Stokes) while the nine returning letterwinners account for 451 cumulative games played. Maryland is one of only three teams in the ACC with 450 or more cumulative games played and one of only two with 200 or more starts.
LAST SEASON AND THIS SEASON
Maryland finished with a 21-11 record last season and played in its school-record fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament. The Terps also played the nations toughest schedule last season according to the Sagarin Ratings. In 1998-99 the Terps return three starters (Laron Profit, Obinna Ekezie and Terrell Stokes) and welcome the nations third-ranked recruiting class to the team this season.
SEASON CREDENTIALS
Season and single game media credentials maybe obtained by contacting The Maryland media relations office. Official requests must be Made by a sports editor or director on company letter head and directed to Chuck Walsh. The fax number is (301) 314-9094.
1998-99 ROSTER
No. Name Yr. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown (Previous School) 3 Laron Profit Sr. F/G 6-5 202 Charleston, S.C. (Caesar Rodney, Del.) 5 Juan Dixon Fr.R G 6-3 152 Baltimore, Md. (Calvert Hall) 12 Terrell Stokes Sr. G 6-0 187 Philadelphia, Pa. (Simon Gratz) 15 Danny Miller Fr. G 6-8 205 Mt. Holly, N.J. (Rancocas Valley) 20 Matt Hahn Jr. G 6-0 162 Columbia, Md. (Atholton) 21 LaRon Cephas So.R F 6-7 223 Wilmington, Del. (The Sanford School) 23 Steve Francis Jr. G 6-3 194 Takoma Park, Md. (Allegany J.C) 31 Norman Fields Sr. G 6-0 185 Mt. Vernon, N.Y. (Mt. St. Michael) 33 Mike Mardesich So.R C/F 7-0 255 Boston, Mass. (Worcester Academy) 35 Lonny Baxter Fr. F 6-8 225 Silver Spring, Md. (Hargrave Military) 44 Terence Morris So. F 6-9 205 Frederick, Md. (Thomas Johnson) 45 Brian Watkins Sr.R F 6-9 229 Nashville, Tenn. (Overland) 54 Obinna Ekezie Sr. F/C 6-10 262 Pt. Harcourt, Nigeria (Worcester Aca.)
