Feb. 7, 2005
Virginia Tech Game Notes in PDF Format
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COLLEGE PARK, Md. -
The Maryland basketball team (13-7, 4-5 ACC) returns home to Comcast Center looking to rebound in its first meeting of the season with new conference foe Virginia Tech (12-8, 5-4 ACC). The Terrapins look to get back to their winning ways in the first contest of a two-game homestand this week. The Terps take on the Hokies at 9 p.m. Tuesday in a game that will be televised on regional ACC sports networks, airing in the Mid-Atlantic region on Comcast SportsNet. Bob Rathbun and Dan Bonner call the action in the Terps' first hardwood meeting with the Hokies since 1991.
The Terrapins look to bounce back in the friendly confines of Comcast Center after a pair of conference road losses. On Saturday at Miami, the Terps were narrowly edged in overtime, 75-73, despite a furious second-half effort by guards Chris McCray and Mike Jones. McCray scored 20 of his career-high 23 points after the first intermission, finishing the contest with a 6-of-12 mark from the field, a 4-of-7 effort from long range and a 7-of-8 effort from the charity stripe. He also added five assists and four rebounds. Jones, meanwhile, kept the contest close in the first half by scoring eight points in eight minutes, and helped the Terps down the stretch, totaling 14 points (5-of-10 FGs, 4-of-9 3-pt. FGs) and seven rebounds in 16 minutes. John Gilchrist finished the game with eight points, four assists and four boards, while Nik Caner-Medley and Travis Garrison each scored eight with seven rebounds, helping the Terps to a 51-46 advantage on the glass. Garrison nailed two free throws to tie the contest with four seconds remaining in regulation, but Maryland's comeback was denied by a pair of Miami free throws with less than one second in OT.
The Terrapins are currently the No. 34 team in RPI rankings, with the 10th-strongest schedule in the nation. Maryland is ranked fourth in the RPI among ACC teams. The Terps have scored two victories over Top 40 RPI teams, including Maryland's Jan. 26 win at Duke and its Jan. 30 victory over Georgia Tech. Only one of the Terps' losses is to a team outside the RPI Top 100 (NC State, Jan. 23).
Virginia Tech is the Terps' second-straight opponent of the newly expanded ACC. The Hokies won six of seven games before dropping an 83-63 decision to Wake Forest in Blacksburg, Va., on Saturday. Sophomore guard Jamon Gordon (11.0 ppg) doubled his scoring average with 22 points against the Demon Deacons, to go along with five rebounds and four assists. The Hokies' leading scorer at 15.0 ppg, sophomore guard Zabian Dowdell, netted 13 with seven assists against the Deacons, while senior Carlos Dixon (13.9 ppg) made seven steals in Tech's losing effort. In its first season in the ACC, Virginia Tech has already won close games against Clemson (home, 59-57), NC State (home, 72-71), Georgia Tech (away, 70-69), Virginia (home, 79-73) and fellow newcomer Miami (away, 73-63). The Terps will also face Virginia Tech on March 5 in Blacksburg in the last regular-season game for both teams.
The Terrapins lead in the all-time series, 23-4, but the teams have not squared off since the 1991 season. Maryland has won the last six games of the series since 1953, and is 13-2 all-time in College Park.
Terp Streaks & Storylines
Terrapin junior guard Chris McCray scored a career-high 23 points at Miami -- a performance in which he shot 6-of-12 (.500) from the field and 4-of-9 (.444) from 3-point range. Across the last two games, McCray is averaging 17.0 points , 3.0 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 1.0 steals. In the last two contests he has fired at a 48 percent clip from the field and has made 50 percent of his shots from long range, all while sinking 90 percent of his free throws. McCray is currently second in the ACC and the nation in free throw shooting, hitting at a 92 percent rate (57-of-62).
Terrapin junior forward Nik Caner-Medley, named ESPN.com's National Player of the Week by Andy Katz after the wins over Duke and Georgia Tech, leads the Terps in scoring at 16.6 ppg. He is averaging 19.8 ppg across the last eight games, shooting .483 from the field while grabbing 6.9 rebounds per game, dishing 2.4 assists and making 1.6 steals. Caner-Medley has led the Terps in scoring nine times this season, has registered more than 20 points in four of the past eight games and posted a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds against NC State on Jan. 23.
Junior point guard John Gilchrist is averaging 13.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.7 assists over the last three games. He currently is second in the ACC in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.1) and third in assists (5.4 apg). Gilchrist, a preseason Naismith and Wooden All-American, is 20th in the league in scoring at 14.1 ppg, is 14th in steals (1.8 spg) and tied for 20th in rebounding (5.0 rpg).
Sophomore D.J. Strawberry, who was among the ACC's steals leaders with 24 on the year, will miss the remainder of the basketball season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). Smooth-shooting sophomore guard Mike Jones and junior reserve combo-guard Sterling Ledbetter have stepped up in his place. Jones burned Temple for 21 points (Jan. 15), connecting on a career-high four 3-pointers and scored 14 at Miami as well. He is averaging 7.6 ppg across the last seven games. Ledbetter has proven to be solid at the point or two-guard positions, scored a career-high 10 points against Clemson, and has averaged nearly 19 minutes in the last three contests.
Terrapin head coach Gary Williams -- named Dick Vitale's Coach of the Week after the Terps' victories over No. 2 Duke and No. 22/21 Georgia Tech -- is now in fifth place outright on the ACC's all-time wins list with a record of 328-172 as Maryland's head coach, surpassing former Virginia head coach Terry Holland (326 wins, 1974-90). Williams is also fourth outright in terms of victories over ACC league teams (136), as he surpassed former Georgia Tech head coach Bobby Cremins, who totaled 134 from 1982-2000 with the Yellow Jackets.
Under Williams, Maryland has defeated 60 Top 25 teams, including No. 25/24 Memphis (Nov. 26, 84-61), No. 2/2 Duke (Jan. 26, 75-66) and No. 22/21 Georgia Tech (Jan. 30, 79-71) this season. The Terps have downed 23 Top 10 opponents, 15 Top 5 foes and the No. 1 team in the nation five times under Williams. Williams, the ACC's second-winningest active head coach and one of only two mentors who have won the national championship, has led the Terps to victory over the No. 3, No. 2 or No. 1 team in the nation in each of the last six seasons.
At 82.1 points per game, the Terps own one of the most potent scoring offenses in the nation. Maryland is seventh in the NCAA (Jan. 31), trailing only North Carolina, Washington, Niagara, Wake Forest, Duke and Louisville in terms of scoring output. The Terps are ranked third in the ACC in scoring offense, behind only UNC, Wake and Duke.
Maryland has made a significant improvement at the free throw line, ranking second in the 11-team ACC with a .714 mark from the line after finishing ninth (.631) in 2003-04. McCray is second in the nation and ranks second in the league with a .919 (57-for-62) mark from the line.
On Deck
The Duke Blue Devils come to town for the return game on the ACC schedule on Saturday, February 12 at 9 p.m. The game will be nationally televised on ESPN, with ESPN's College Basketball GameDay broadcasting live from Comcast Center. All Maryland students are invited to attend, and can claim tickets at tickets.umd.edu. ESPN2's Cold Pizza will be on campus and on the air from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Friday.
The Terrapins head to NC State looking to avenge a Jan. 23 loss on Wednesday, Feb. 16 at 9 p.m. The game will air on the Raycom/Jefferson Pilot Network.
