March 6, 2007

Game Notes

Fifth-seeded Maryland takes on No. 12 Miami in the first round of the 2007 ACC Tournament. Tip-off is set for Thursday at 2:30 p.m. at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Fla. The game can be heard on the Terrapin Sports Radio Network and will be televised regionally on the Raycom/ Lincoln Financial Network. The winner of Thursday's game advances to face No. 4 Boston College Friday at 2:30 p.m.
• The Terps carry a mark of 24-7 (10-6 ACC) into the contest, while Miami is 11-19 (4-12 ACC). The Terrapins enter Thursday's game on a seven-game winning streak while Miami has lost each of its last three games, including a 98-90 decision against Florida State on Saturday (March 3). Maryland is ranked 17th in the Associated Press poll and 20th in the latest ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll.
• Maryland finished the ACC regular season tied for third place with a 10-6 record. It is Maryland's best conference record since the Terps went 11-5 in 2003.
• Thursday's game against Miami marks just the 13th meeting between the two schools. Miami leads the all-time series, 7-5. The Hurricanes won the only regular-season meeting (63-58) between the two schools on January 10 in College Park.
• The Terrapins are 41-49 all-time in the ACC Tournament. This is the ninth time the Terps have earned the fifth seed, where they have gone 3-8. The last time the Terps earned the No. 5 seed was in 1997 when they knocked off Clemson (76-61) in the first round before falling to NC State (65-58) in the second round.
• Maryland senior D.J. Strawberry leads the Terps with 15.2 points per game. He is 11th in the Atlantic Coast Conference in scoring. Sophomore Jack McClinton leads the Hurricanes with 16.8 points per game. He is ninth in the ACC in scoring and leads the league in three-point percentage (.438).
• Maryland's seven-game winning streak in league play was its longest since the Terrapins finished the 2001-02 season with 12 consecutive ACC regular-season victories.
• Maryland's victory over NC State (March 3) gave the Terps their first sweep over schools from the state of North Carolina since 1932-33.

A charter member of the Atlantic Coast Conference, Maryland is 41-49 (.456) all-time in 52 ACC Tournaments dating back to its first appearance in 1954. The Terps have captured three ACC Tourney titles - 1958, 1984, 2004 - and have advanced to the championship game on nine occasions. Maryland has advanced to the ACC Tournament semifinals 27 times (9-18). Head coach Gary Williams is 15-14 in 16 ACC tournaments at Maryland and led the Terps to the 2004 ACC Championship. Under Williams, Maryland has won at least one game in 12-of-15 ACC Tournaments.

Maryland enters the ACC Tournament as the No. 5 seed for the ninth time in school history. The Terps are 3-8 all-time as the fifth seed in the conference tournament. The last time Maryland earned the No. 5 seed was in 1997. The Terrapins posted a victory over Clemson (76-61) in the first round of the ACC Tourney before falling to NC State (65-58) in the second round. Maryland has been the fifth seed nine times, the same amount of times as they have earned the second seed. The Terps are 3-5 in the opening round as the No. 5 seed.

• Maryland has won at least one game in the tournament 29 times, which ranks fourth among member schools.
• Maryland is second among all ACC schools with at least one win in eight consecutive tournaments from 1995-2002.
• The Terps have won at least two postseason games (ACC, NCAA, NIT) in eight of the last nine seasons and have averaged better than four postseason wins the last five years (22-10).
• Only once in tournament history have four players from one team scored 20 or more points in a game - John Lucas (24), Owen Brown (22), Mo Howard (22) and Tom McMillen combined for 86 points in Maryland's 105-85 semifinal win over North Carolina in 1974.
• 56 Terps have earned ACC All-Tournament honors, which ranks third all-time. Maryland has had 23 players earn first-team honors and 33 named to the second team. Four Terps have earned tournament MVP honors - John Gilchrist (2004), Len Bias (1984), Albert King (1980) and Nick Davis (1958).
• Maryland has faced NC State 17 times in the ACC Tournament - the most of any team. The Terps have also faced Duke (16) and North Carolina (15) the most times behind the Wolfpack.
• The 1974 title game between NC State and Maryland featured six players who earned All-America honors during their collegiate careers (David Thompson, Tom Burleson, Monte Towe-NC State; Tom McMillen, John Lucas, Len Elmore-Maryland). All six players, along with former Terps Tommy Roy, Mo Howard & Owen Brown, and NC State's Phil Spence were future NBA draft picks.

Four Terrapins scored in double figures as Maryland knocked off NC State, 79-59, at Comcast Center Saturday (March 3), giving the Terps a sweep of the season series. It was the sixth time this season the Terps won an ACC game by double figures. The victory over NC State gave the Terrapins a sweep over ACC foes from the state of North Carolina since 1932-33. Senior Mike Jones scored a game-high 21 points in the victory. It was the second consecutive game in which the senior guard has topped the 20- point plateau.
• Senior D.J. Strawberry scored 16 points and added six rebounds and four assists in the victory.
• Forward Ekene Ibekwe tallied his seventh double-double of the season with 14 points and 12 rebounds. It was the 13th double-double of his career.
• Junior James Gist scored 10 points and added nine rebounds. Gist added two assists, three blocked shots and two steals in 28 minutes against the Wolfpack.
• Maryland outrebounded NC State, 47-31, and enjoyed a 46-34 advantage in points scored in the paint.

Maryland is ranked 17th in the latest Associated Press Poll, released March 5. The Terps ranked 20th in the latest ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, released March 5. The Terps made their season debut in both polls on November 20.
• Maryland has appeared in the AP Top 25 a total of 350 times. The Terrapins have placed in the AP Top 25 at least once in each of the last 14 seasons.
• The Terps have been ranked in the coaches poll 324 times. Maryland has placed in the coaches poll at least once in each of the last 14 seasons.
• The Terrapins were ranked ninth in the March 5th Sagarin Ratings. Maryland has 10 wins over teams ranked in the Sagarin Top 50. The Terps are 5-1 against teams ranked in the Sagarin Top 25.
• Maryland is ranked ninth in the latest RPI Report. The Terps have 10 wins against teams ranked in the Top 100 of the RPI. Maryland has played the 10th toughest schedule in the country, according to the RPI.
• The Terrapins ranked 15th on ESPN.com's Power 16 March 2.
• The Terps were named Team of the Week by Andy Katz on February 26.
• The Terps were named Team of the Week on November 20 by both Dick Vitale and Andy Katz.

Maryland senior D.J. Strawberry has continued his strong all-around play as a senior. Strawberry is 11th in the ACC with a team-high 15.2 points per game.
• The senior swingman is fifth in the conference with 2.03 steals per game and ranks seventh in assist to turnover ratio (1.76).
• Strawberry's 18-point performance at NC State (Feb. 14) made him the 45th player in school history to reach the 1,000-point plateau. Strawberry now has 1,093 points for his career. His 472 points this year is his highest single-season total.
• After helping the Terps post wins at Florida State and North Carolina, Strawberry was named the ACC Player of the Week on February 26. It was the second consecutive week he earned the award. He averaged 18.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game last week and shot 63 percent (17 of 27) from the field. It was the third time this season he earned the weekly award.

Maryland has displayed a balanced offensive attack this season. The Terps boast the second highest scoring average in the league (80.1 ppg), and have five players averaging double figures.
• D.J. Strawberry leads the team with 15.2 points per game. Mike Jones is averaging 13.4 points per game while James Gist is averaging 12.7 points per contest. Ekene Ibekwe is averaging 10.6 points. Freshman Greivis Vasquez is averaging 10.0 points per game.
• Strawberry and Jones have each led the team in scoring eleven times this season. Ibekwe and Gist have led the Terps in the scoring column in four games this season.
• Maryland has outscored its opponents by an average of 12.5 points per game this season. That is the second best scoring margin in the ACC behind North Carolina (18.6).

Seniors Ekene Ibekwe, Mike Jones and D.J. Strawberry are among elite company at the University of Maryland:
• With nine points at Florida State, Mike Jones became the 43rd Terrapin to reach the 1,000-point plateau. Jones has 1,127 points for his career. • Ibekwe scored 14 points against NC State and now has 1,082 points as a Terrapin. With his
754 career rebounds, Ibekwe is became just the 21st Terrapin to record 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in a career. With 223 blocks to his credit he is just the fourth Terp to tally 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 200 blocked shots, joining Lonny Baxter (1999-02), Terence Morris (1998-01) and Derrick Lewis (1985-88).
• Ibekwe's 223 career blocked shots makes him just the 21st player in ACC history to reach the 200-blocks plateau.
• Strawberry became the 45th player in school history to reach 1,000 points with an 18-point performance at NC State (Feb. 14). He has 1,093 points for his career.

Maryland has been one of the top programs in the ACC over the past ten seasons.
• With 102 wins since 1998, Maryland is second among all ACC schools in regular-season wins.
• Head coach Gary Williams ranks second among active ACC coaches with 157 career wins in league play.
• The Terps captured the 2002 ACC regular-season title & the 2004 ACC Tourney championship.

Maryland is in its 54th season as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Terps were a charter member of the conference in 1953-54 after 30 years as a member of the Southern Conference.
• The Terps are 389-376 (.507) all-time in ACC games.
• Maryland is 244-141 (.631) in ACC home games.
• Maryland is 146-235 (.381) in ACC away games.
• Under Gary Williams, Maryland is 157-128 (.546) in ACC play.
• Maryland is 96-46 (.672) at home in ACC games under Williams, including a 27-11 (.686) mark at the Comcast Center.
• The Terps have captured three ACC Tournament Championships: 1958,1984 and 2004.