Feb. 10, 2012

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Quotes from head coach Mark Turgeon in advance of Maryland's game at Duke Saturday at 4 p.m.

On where they can improve in defending Duke forwards Mason and Miles Plumlee:
"Our one-on-one post defense can be better. Keeping Alex Len in the game would help; he's tall enough to guard those brothers. There could be a different animal in that building than what we faced here but we'll tweak a few things that we think will help us be better defensively. I'd rather Plumlee score 22 than give up 15 3s any day. I thought that if we guarded that way we would win but we weren't good enough offensively to win. They made free throws that night too, which was a huge part of that game. We'll do a couple different things, things that we will try and hopefully it will work."

On their game plan to slow Duke's perimeter shooting:
"Sometimes you can put a game plan in and say you're going to take this away and still can't do it. I think Duke, in their home building, if they're hitting 3s it is going to be a long afternoon for us. They might make ten or fifteen on us but we're going to try and take that away from them best we can."

On Pe'Shon Howard's play since returning from injury:
"He's defending his tail off. He guards and he guards and he guards; he just never stops guarding. I don't think Pe'Shon is a natural point guard. I think he's a guy that's really trying to be a point guard and do what's best for the team. Some games are better than others. I thought he would shoot the ball a little better this year but there's a lot on his shoulders trying to run this team and to guard, we always put him on the best players. I think to this point he's really helped us and played well."

On how much Terrell Stoglin's play on Tuesday is a template of how he wants him to play every game:
"You just keep coaching Terrell. It was one of those games where the two shots he did miss were bad shots. He made a couple bad ones but they forced him to give it up, they doubled him a lot, which is why he didn't get as many shots up there. I thought defensively, he was good. His energy was great. He's had a lot of good games but that was arguably his best game because of all the things that he did. We'll keep working with him. I've said this before, but I can't believe how far he's come. From the first individual workout, I thought there's no way I can coach this kid to where I said he's really buying in and doing what he is supposed to be doing. So far so good."

If it's more challenging when Stoglin is getting double-teamed:
"It's really hard for him when the guys he's throwing it to aren't making plays. If guys are making plays, he's relieved because then he doesn't have beat these two guys and then beat another guy to score. We're all relieved. The other night Sean Mosley made plays, Alex Len made plays, Ashton Pankey made plays; we made plays. That really helps and helps him trust his teammates more. If they finish he handles it better."

On using a rotation including Berend Weijs and Alex Len:
"It all depends. The other night, Alex picked up a couple quick ones and Berend was good again, he played well in both halves. Berend's a shot blocker and Alex is a shot blocker. They both played good when we played Carolina and we'll give them a shot tomorrow and hopefully they'll do well because our post-defense has to be better to have a chance. If it's not good, it's going to be a long day. We'll challenge our guys post-defensively tomorrow. Berend's been playing with a lot of energy, like a senior. He sees the light at the end of the tunnel, his career's winding down. He's been practicing hard, playing hard, and really helping us."

On getting a road win:
"Clemson was good for us, our guys were proud of themselves. What I'm looking more at is how well we played to get up 14, 15, 16 points or whatever we were up. I never thought we could do that. We were so good in that stretch offensively and defensively and in our execution. Every time we go out I feel like we get just a little bit better. It was a fun stretch there and guys are gaining confidence. Our schedule is crazy coming up so it was good to get a win."

On team manager Zach Lederer, who is battling brain cancer:
"Zach's had a huge impact. Obviously he's gone national on us, or viral, whatever you say. We lost at Florida State and talked about Zach to the team and what he did with his surgery the night we played Duke; he came out of surgery and was able to watch the second half, then showed up on Saturday for practice. I think it's just been an inspiration for all for the guys because Zach's so positive everyday with the players. To see how confident he is and how resilient he is towards this disease has been great for our guys. Losing still hurts but you realize it's just a game. I think it's made our guys work a little bit harder and appreciate all the managers a lot more. To have a kid right around your age with a second bout with cancer is an eye opener for them to really enjoy what they have. He's been an inspiration to me in so many ways; I could go on and on. We wore the white sneakers down in Miami for Zach. We're just waiting on test results right now to see how we're going to get rid of the rest of the cancer. He was with us at Clemson, he's our good luck charm, and we got our first road win. He's a special kid."