Dec. 22, 2008
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -
Maryland puts a three-game winning streak and a 7-2 record on the line in a Monday night matchup against American University at Comcast Center. The contest is the second in a month-long, seven-game homestand that has the Terrapins playing in their arena until mid-January. The Eagles are 5-5 following a 74-61 victory at UMBC on Saturday night behind 34 points from Garrison Carr.
* Maryland, now 5-0 at home this season after an 86-58 victory over Delaware State on Dec. 12, will have been off for nine days due to final exams. The Terrapins will play the Eagles, then break for five more days for the holidays before returning home on Dec. 27 to face Bryant. Maryland received votes in both the Associated Press and the ESPN/USA Today coaches polls in each of the last two weeks.
* The Terrapins' only losses so far this season have come to ranked teams. The Terps lost to Gonzaga, ranked 7th in last week's coaches poll, and Georgetown, ranked 13th last week. Maryland closed last week ranked 27th in the Ratings Percentage Index and has gone 7-2 against a schedule ranked 25th-toughest in the same index.
* Junior forward Landon Milbourne has led the Terrapins in scoring over the past two games, extending his career-high in scoring in each contest. Milbourne had 20 points in Maryland's 76-53 win over George Washington at the BB&T Classic, and followed with 23 points in the win at home over Delaware State. Milbourne now ranks second on the team in scoring with an 11.9 points-per-game average and is one of four Terrapins averaging in double figures.
Noting the Eagles
American began the season 4-1, and is now 5-5 after having a four-game losing streak snapped with a 74-61 win at UMBC on Saturday night... Senior guard Garrison Carr had 8 3-pointers en route to 34 pts.
Including the trip to Comcast Center, the Eagles will play only two home games in their first dozen this season...
American is led by Carr, who is averaging 18.0 ppg... He is one of five seniors who have been in the starting lineup in nine of AU's first 10 games...
Brian Gilmore also averages in double figures in points (12.5) is the Eagles' leader on the boards (6.3 rebounds per game) and is tied for the team lead in assists (2.7 per game)...
American is one of four schools where current Maryland head coach Gary Williams has coached during his 31-year career... Williams was 72-42 in four seasons with the Eagles between 1978-79 and 1981-82. His 1980-81 team was 24-6 overall and 11-0 in East Coast Conference play.
Gary Williams' 20th Season
Head coach Gary Williams reaches another in a career filled with milestones when he coaches his alma mater for the 20th season in 2008-09...
He is the 6th-winningest active head coach in NCAA Division I men's basketball with an overall record of 611-345 (.639)... He ranks 2nd among active ACC coaches with 404 wins at Maryland (3rd all-time) and also ranks second among active league coaches with 165 ACC victories. Williams is the Terps' all-time winningest coach...
He earned his 400th victory at his alma mater on 11/21 with an overtime win over Vermont... His 397 wins in 19 years at the beginning of the season were an average of 20.9 wins per season with the Terps...
Maryland's 70-65 victory over Boston College (2/6/2008) gave Williams his 600th career victory... Only five other active head coaches in Division I have 600 career wins...
Williams picked up his 400th victory at Maryland against Vermont (11/21)... The milestone came in dramatic fashion, as Vasquez buried a 3-pointer with 6 seconds left to force overtime... The Terps scored the first 17 points of the extra period, earning the most lopsided OT victory in school history with a 17-2 edge in the extra session... Williams picked up the victory over former assistant Mike Lonergan, now in his 4th season as head coach at Vermont.
Milestones, Streaks, etc.
Maryland has hit at least one 3-pointer in 329 consecutive games.
The Terps have won 58 of 62 non-conference games since moving into Comcast Center.
Maryland has won at least 19 games in 12 straight seasons.
The Terps have made 15 consecutive postseason appearances.
Maryland's last losing season came in 1992-93, the last season of devastating NCAA sanctions levied against previous staffs at Maryland... Each school in the ACC has had a losing season since the Terps fell below .500 some 15 seasons ago... In fact, 9 of the 11 ACC opponents have suffered through a losing season since the Terps won the NCAA title in 2002... Duke and UNC are the exceptions.
Between 2004-05 and 2007-08, Maryland won 82 games, an average of 20.5 per season... That matches the number of wins that Gary Williams directed during the first four seasons (1994-97) of Maryland's run of 11 straight NCAA Tournaments.
Tri-Captains
Maryland will have three captains repesenting the team in a leadership role in 2008-09. Senior Dave Neal will accept the role, along with juniors Greivis Vasquez and Landon Milbourne.
Looking Ahead
The Terrapins are playing the second of a seven-game homestand with the game against American... The Terps will not leave Comcast Center for a game again until a mid-January road trip that will take them to Miami (1/14/2009) and Florida State (1/17/2009)... The final game in the current homestand will mark Maryland's ACC opener, when the Terps host Georgia Tech (1/10/2009)...
Maryland's next five opponents are the final non-conference teams on the regular-season schedule and include American, Bryant, Elon, Charlotte and Morgan State.
Maryland Among ACC's Best Last Ten Years
Maryland has been one of the top programs in the ACC over the past 10 seasons.
With 100 wins since 1999, Maryland is third among all ACC schools in regular-season wins.
Head coach Gary Williams ranks second among active ACC coaches with 165 career wins in league play.
The Terps captured the 2002 ACC regular-season title & the 2004 ACC Tourney championship.
Tough Schedule
Between playing in the Atlantic Coast Conference (currently ranked 1st as a league in the Sagarin Computer Ratings) and facing three ranked teams in the 2008 Old Spice Classic, the Maryland men's basketball schedule is formidable:
Three Terrapin opponents for 2008-09 are currently ranked in the Top 7 in the ESPN/USA Today poll (#1 North Carolina, #6 Duke, #7 Gonzaga).
Seven Terrapin opponents for 2008-09 are currently ranked among the Top 25 teams in the coaches poll (previous three along with #10 Wake Forest, #13 Georgetown, #22 Michigan State, #25 Clemson).
10 Terrapin opponents for 2008-09 are either ranked or are receiving votes in the Associated Press poll, including the Terps' ACC/Big Ten Challenge opponent, Michigan.
Maryland is the lone ACC team that will face conference home-and-home series with #1 North Carolina and #6 Duke... The Terps will also play twice in the regular season against Miami.
Adept at The Line
Maryland currently leads the Atlantic Coast Conference in free throw percentage at .791... Before weekend games, NC State was 2nd in the league at .755...
Maryland entered the week (through games of 12/14) ranked 6th in the nation in FT percentage (Green Bay led the nation at .862).
Among 5 Terrapins who have at least 10 FTs this year, 4 of those are shooting at least .780 from the line... That group is led by Greivis Vasquez, who is hitting at an ACC-best .897 clip (35-for-39)... Eric Hayes is 19-for-20 at the stripe this year.
Maryland's school-record for team FT percentage for a season is .758, set in 1976.
