Talented Terps Building On Last Season
10/25/2001 8:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Oct. 25, 2001
by Andy Katz, ESPN.com
Read this preview on the ESPN website
Chris Wilcox, stronger, more cut, and more agile in the post, is the first image that gives Maryland hope it could be better than a season ago.
See Wilcox sprint down court, catch a Steve Blake pass and jam.
See the 6-foot-10 Wilcox catch the ball in the post and score, rather easily.
See him do it next to senior Lonny Baxter who can post-up, rebound and do just about anything he wants in the post.
Chris Wilcox's development in the post is just another eason to like Maryland's chances to win it all in 2002. See Wilcox be the athletic power forward next to 6-10 Tahj Holden, an oversized small forward who has shooting skills and low-post moves.
See Wilcox be an intimidating defender in the middle next to 6-9 junior college transfer Ryan Randle, an aspiring version of Baxter, and it's easy to see why the Terps have the frontcourt to mess with Duke and Carlos Boozer.
Oh, did we mention Maryland's guards? Juan Dixon (18.2 ppg), Blake (248 assists to 111 turnovers) and Drew Nicholas (42 percent on 3s), or small forward Byron Mouton (9.6 ppg)? Yeah, they might be on the thin side, all but Mouton that is, but they're pretty good shooters, too.
All the above makes defending the Terps a tough choice. Zone 'em and the shooters don't miss too often. Play 'em straight up, and their size inside will were out most teams.
Then, there is the confidence that comes from reaching the program's first Final Four.
"Last year we hoped we could get to the Final Four, this year we know it's possible," Maryland coach Gary Williams said. "We'll miss Danny Miller (transferred to Notre Dame) and the job he did on players like Stanford's Casey Jacobsen (in the Elite Eight). But we can make up for Miller with Mouton. We've got matchup problems for other teams, especially if Holden is the 3 (small forward)."
And, especially if Wilcox plays during the season like he is in practice. NBA scouts witnessing Wilcox are convinced he's the best pro prospect on the team. That doesn't mean much in college, if he doesn't reach that potential before he leaves College Park.
But Wilcox is showing he can deliver before the NBA comes calling and that's one reason why Maryland is a realistic threat to win the national title.
"Chris will take lots of pressure off me," Baxter said. "You should see how he's improved in practice."
We did. He has.
And Wilcox can do more than just dunk.
"Everyone says a lot of nice things about a guy who played 13 minutes a game last season," said Williams of Wilcox, who actually played less than that (8.6 minutes a game), but averaged 3.6 points and 2.1 rebounds. "He can run the court like you wouldn't believe. Now he's got to do that in 25 minutes. He's just a sophomore. He needs to shoot better free throws, improve his jump shot. But where he could go is scary."
Williams will go with the big lineup at times when Mouton is out of the game. That means Wilcox, Holden and Baxter next to Dixon and Blake. When Mouton is in, then either Holden or Wilcox or Baxter will sit.
"We're so big and athletic up front," Wilcox said. "Most of my points will come off the boards. If the ball goes up, I'm looking for it."
So, too, is Baxter, who is used to not getting the publicity yet performing at a high level. Take your pick for the balance on this team. Baxter and Dixon, or Wilcox and Blake can give the Terps the inside-out combination that will make them tough to defend, as long as they can toughen up their halfcourt defense.
"I know we had more assists than any of the 64 teams in the NCAA Tournament," Williams said. "We're an unselfish team that makes the extra pass. Everyone has to understand that they get what they deserve as a player. We've got guys who respect each other. Lonny was always told he was the fat kid and Juan was told he was too thin. Now they're in the same situation they were in going into their senior year in high school. They've got to prove they can belong at the next level (the NBA). That's fine with me. They know they'll look better as long as we win."
Baxter may look big -- he's listed anywhere from 250 to 260 pounds depending on the source -- but that doesn't stop him from running the floor like a small forward. He can jam from a stand still position and is quick to get the outlet pass to Blake or Dixon. Neither one of them are holding back from scoring either, as Blake has been told to shoot more often when he's got the open look.
"Anyone of us can give you 20-something points," Holden said. "We've got so many threats offensively."
Holden's sore Achilles prevented him from going to China with the World University Games. Dixon and Baxter went and came back with more confidence in each other's games and even more of a chip to prove everyone wrong about their and Maryland's potential.
"We can show people the next level that we belong," Dixon said. "Me and Lonny don't get a lot of publicity, but we'll get as long as we keep winning."
Dixon's ballhandling skills are better, he can create more for his teammates and he's more of a basketball player now than just a scorer. The team is littered with those and that's why Maryland's got a chance to win the title.
The Terps also have just a little extra motivation, call it a passion, and certainly the hunger to beat Duke. Do that, at the right time, and they just may be the last team standing in Atlanta.
