Nov. 22, 2003

Recap| Box Score| Quotes

* The Maryland basketball team (No. 25 USA Today/ESPN, RV AP) defeated American University 79-48 in its 2003-04 regular season opener Saturday night at Comcast Center. Maryland now leads the all-time series 11-1 and the Terrapins move to 57-28 in season openers, including 12-3 under Head Coach Gary Williams (9-0 in regular season home openers). It was the Terps' largest margin of victory since a 91-52 defeat of Clemson on Feb. 25, 2003 and tied the largest margin of victory in the series against the Eagles (a 98-67 win on Dec. 10, 1992) .

* Maryland built a 35-8 halftime lead. The eight first-half points allowed by the Terrapins were the fewest points allowed in a half in Gary Williams' 15-year span as head coach and the fewest points in a half since Jan. 9, 1971 when Maryland set the school record as they held South Carolina to three points in the famous slow-down game at Cole Field House. That halftime score was 4-3 in favor of the Terps, who went on to win the game 31-30 in an overtime thriller.

* The Terrapin defense also held American to under 15 percent shooting (4-of-27) and forced 13 Eagle turnovers in the first half. They held American without any points for nearly a 15-minute stretch in the first half, during which the Terps scored 27 straight points to lead 29-2 with 3:54 left in the half. American began the game shooting 1-of-21 shooting during that stretch, including 19 consecutive missed shots during their drought.

* The Terrapins' starting lineup of senior center Jamar Smith, sophomore forwards Nik Caner-Medley and Travis Garrison, and sophomore guards Chris McCray and John Gilchrist marks the youngest Maryland starting squad since the 1999-00 season. That year, freshman point guard Steve Blake joined sophomore guard Juan Dixon, sophomore forward Danny Miller, junior forward Terence Morris and sophomore center Lonny Baxter as the Terps' regular starting-five.

* Smith notched his first career double-double with a team-high 14 points and 12 rebounds on 7-of-17 shooting. The 12 boards set a career-best, breaking his previous mark of 10 rebounds set on Jan. 30, 2003 against NC State. Smith also had four assists on the evening.

* Maryland got contributions throughout its lineup as McCray and freshman Mike Jones got into double digits with 10 points apiece, while Garrison, Caner-Medley and freshman forward Ekene Ibekwe each collected nine points. All 13 Terrapins saw action in the game.

* Garrison scored the first points of the season for Maryland with a short bank-shot at the 18:54 mark of the first half.

* Caner-Medley and Smith picked up where they left off last year as the team's leading returning scorers. Caner-Medley collected seven of the Terps' first nine points, including a three-pointer from the left wing and a thunderous slam that boosted Maryland to an early 9-2 lead. Smith followed with three consecutive layups to increase Maryland's lead to 15-2. He finished the first half with a team-high 12 points on six-of-nine shooting.

* Maryland's five freshmen played like seasoned veterans, scoring 28 points on 11-of-20 shooting and pulling down 10 rebounds. Jones and Ibekwe led the way with 10 and 9 points, respectively, while D.J. Strawberry added seven points and five rebounds in 17 minutes of action.

* Ibekwe and Strawberry were the first Terrapin substitutions of the game. They entered with 13:17 remaining in the first half and Strawberry pulled down his first career rebound on American's first offensive possession after the stoppage. Ibekwe led Maryland with three blocked shots.

* Maryland dominated action in the paint, outscoring American 50-14 down low. They also took advantage of 23 Eagle turnovers, which turned into 34 Terrapin points.