Terps Open ACC Play at NC State

Jan. 6, 2012

Maryland (10-3, 0-0) at NC State (11-4, 0-0)
Sunday, Jan. 8, 2012 | 6 p.m. | RBC Center, Raleigh, N.C.
ESPNU | Terrapin Sports Radio Network

Maryland enters a hostile enviroment for the first time in the 2011-12 season when it travels to NC State for a Sunday Night battle in Raleigh. The game is the Atlantic Coast Conference opener for both teams. The Terrapins have played four games away from Comcast Center this season, but all have been neutral-site matchups (three in San Juan, P.R.; one in Washington, D.C., at Verizon Center).

Head coach Mark Turgeon makes his ACC debut also against the Wolfpack with a team that has played just three games with its full complement of players. Sophomore point guard Pe'Shon Howard has played in four games after returning from a broken left foot and 7-foot-1 center Alex Len has played in three games since coming off a 10-game NCAA suspension due to amateurism guidelines.

The Terrapins are coming off a perfect December than spilled into a seven-game winning streak with their 70-62 victory over Cornell last Tuesday. A win over the Wolfpack would give Maryland its first eight-game winning streak since the Terps opened the 2006-07 season with an 8-0 start.

Sophomore guard Terrell Stoglin continues to lead the ACC in scoring, now with a 21.2 ppg average. Stoglin, who enters the weekend sixth in the nation in scoring, is the only player in the league averaging over 20 points per game and is the only ACC player with two 30-point games this season. He also has a league-best nine 20-point games this year.

Senior guard Sean Mosley led Maryland against Cornell on Tuesday with a strong effort. He scored 19 points, grabbed six rebounds, dished out two assists and had two steals in a 28-minute start. He hit 6 of 9 from the floor and was one of three Terps who were 5-for-6 from the foul line.

Scouting the Wolfpack

NC State heads into Sunday night's matchup riding a five-game winning streak, with the last four victories coming at home by an average margin of 24 points...

In his first season at the school, Mark Gottfried has led the Wolfpack to an 11-4 overall record... Two of the four losses came to teams currently ranked in the Associated Press top 25 poll: Syracuse (No. 1) and Indiana (No. 12).

Only two teams in the ACC - Duke and North Carolina - shoot a better percentage from the field than NC State... The Wolfpack have hit at a .481 clip thus far, as three of its top five scorers are shooting better than 50 percent: forwards C.J. Leslie (.531) and Richard Howell (.533) and guard C.J. Williams (.533).

All five NC State starters average double figures in scoring, led by Leslie's 13.0 ppg... The Pack normally go three forwards and two guards, with the aforementioned Leslie, Howell and Scott Wood in the front court and Williams and Lorenzo Brown in the backcourt...

Wood, a 6-foot-6 junior, leads the ACC in 3-point field goal percentage (.471), with 40 of his 52 made field goals this season coming from long range... Brown, meanwhile, leads the league in steals (1.9 pg) and ranks second with 6.7 assists per game.

The Pack, led by Howell and Leslie, is also strong on the boards... Howell is third in the ACC in rebounding (9.9 rpg) while Leslie chips in 6.2 per game... As a team, NC State is outrebounding its opponents by an average margin of 7.8 per game, a mark that ranks second in the conference behind North Carolina.

Upcoming

Maryland returns to Comcast Center for back-to-back conference games against Wake Forest (Wednesday, 1/11, 7 p.m.) and Georgia Tech (Sunday, 1/15, 4 p.m.) before heading back out on the road at Florida State and at Temple the next week.

Tickets Available

Maryland is discounting tickets for upcoming home games:

A "Mid-Week Two Pack" is available for ACC matchups with Wake Forest (Wednesday, 1/11), Boston College (Thursday, 2/16) and Miami (Tuesday, 2/21) with two tickets, two hot dogs and two sodas available for $44.

For more information, contact the Terrapin Ticket Office at 1-800-IM-A-TERP or log on to www.umterps.com.

Of Note

The 8th annual coat drive, hosted by Shawne Merriman's "Lights On Foundation," will take place on Wednesday, Jan. 11 during the men's basketball game with Wake Forest. Fans are encouraged to donate any new or gently-used coats, hats, scarves and mittens for distribution to those in need through the local area.

The Wake Forest game on 1/11 will begin at 7 p.m. due to television commitments, a departure from Maryland's normal 8 p.m. weeknight starts. Fans are encouraged to arrive on campus early and to pay attention to area traffic reports. Campus Public Safety officials suggest avoiding the Campus Drive entrance off U.S. Route 1.

Maryland (10-3, 0-0) at NC State (11-4, 0-0)
Sunday, Jan. 8, 2012 | 6 p.m. | RBC Center, Raleigh, N.C.
ESPNU | Terrapin Sports Radio Network

Scouting the Wolfpack

Upcoming

Tickets Available

Of Note

Players Mentioned

Pe'Shon Howard

Alex Len

Sean Mosley

Terrell Stoglin

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