COLLEGE PARK, Md. – The Maryland men's basketball team has secured its fourth NCAA Tournament bid in five years earning the No. 6 seed in the East Region announced Sunday evening during the NCAA Selection Show.

The Terps will face the winner of Tuesday's First Four matchup for the No. 11 seed between Belmont and Temple. The Terps will play Belmont or Temple Thursday, March 21 at approximately 3:10 p.m. in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament at Jacksonville Memorial Veterans Arena in Jacksonville, Fla.

This is Maryland's first appearance in the East Regional since the program's 2002 National Championship season.

The game will air live on Tru TV and will be broadcast on ESPN980, 105.7 FM locally and across the region on the Maryland Sports Radio Network.

The Terps, ranked 21th in the Associated Press Poll, enter the tournament with a 22-10 record. Maryland is led by First Team All-Big Ten honoree and Kareem-Abdul Jabar Award finalist Bruno Fernando, who is averaging 13.7 points and 10.4 rebounds.

Second Team All-Big Ten selection Anthony Cowan Jr. leads the Terps in scoring for the second consecutive season (16.0), and is making his second career NCAA Tournament appearance for the Terps.

Maryland is making its 28th overall appearance in the NCAA Tournament, and 22nd postseason appearance in the last 26 years. The Terps have advanced to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen eight times in the last 24 years, including consecutive trips to the NCAA Final Four in 2001 and 2002. The Terps captured the NCAA National Championship in 2002.

Maryland is 41-26 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, including 11 consecutive appearances from 1994 – 2004. The Terps have won at least one game in 12 of its last 13 NCAA appearances dating back to 1998.

Maryland is 4-6 all-time against Temple, with the last meeting coming during the 2012 season. Thursday's game would be the first-ever meeting between Maryland and Belmont. Should Maryland advance to Saturday's Second Round, the Terps would face the winner of No. 3 seed LSU and No. 14 Yale.

--

Head Coach Mark Turgeon and Player Selection Sunday Availability Quotes

Head Coach Mark Turgeon

Opening statement:

"We're really proud of what we accomplished this year to this point. We had a great league with a difficult schedule and to see our name pop up on Selection Sunday was great. If you guys could have been in the room with us you would have seen pure joy and excitement on these guys faces. We're super excited to stay on the east coast and head down to Jacksonville. Hopefully the weather will be warm -- we're looking forward to it. We play Thursday which is great. We had a great day of practice today. We started a new season today. We talked about it and we're fired up to do well in this tournament."

On facing teams they haven't already seen this year:

"The Big Ten -- going into the [Big Ten] tournament is kind of like going to the dentist's office sometimes. You've already played them and you have to play them again. They know every play -- that type of thing. This is a lose and you go home type of deal. We have two opponents right now and we don't know who it's going to be. We'll have a day to prepare. We'll watch a lot of film on both teams heading into Tuesday night and then they'll play Tuesday night. I can just tell by our team meeting today and our practice today that everybody believes this is a new season. We've done some amazing things. The grind is over and now the fun begins. That's kind of the way our guys handled today."  

On whether he looks at playing a team with a play-in game as a challenge or advantage:

"I'm going to look at it as an advantage for us. They have to play in Dayton and then fly to Jacksonville on Tuesday night. They'll have some experience under their belt and they'll have confidence because they won a game. We never work on a team in front of these guys until the day before the game. I might be working on it behind the scenes but they don't know. It will feel like a regular season game for us with the way we prepare and get ready for it. I'm going to look at it as an advantage because we'll be down there Tuesday night sleeping in our hotel while they're playing a game in Dayton."

On the difference watching the Selection Show seeing Maryland in the first bracket compared to being later in past years:

"So this is four out of five. Last year we didn't get in obviously. We've known we were in and that's a big accomplishment with this young team and a tough schedule. To almost a month ago to know you were in the NCAA Tournament was good. The seed showed that they really respected our league and what we accomplished this year, to remain six. I think these guys earned it. We were relaxed. It's nice to have it come up and know who you're playing and where you're going. We got a jump on the airplane and all that kind of stuff because we were one of the first teams to come up. When we want to leave, when we want to practice and all that kind of stuff. Just being in room… I love being a coach, but there is a lot that comes with it. To be in that room. To watch these guys when their name came up; oh my gosh. I wouldn't trade that moment, for all the criticism that we take. It was an amazing moment and a lot of fun."

On potentially playing in Washington D.C. in the Regional Semifinal/Final:

"I didn't know that until one of my assistants said it. We've got a win a postseason game. It's either Belmont or Temple. It doesn't matter the other teams that pop up, we've just got to focus on that part of the bracket. We'll be locked in to that. It's so hard to win a tournament game. They were down here making fun of me because every team that popped up I was like 'whoa'. Every team is good. There are no bad teams in this deal. Our guys know how hard it is to win, but we are battle tested. We played in and unbelievable league and an unbelievably tough schedule, expecilly on the road. We'll be prepared for whoever comes our way."   

On what he believes are the keys to getting a team ready for the NCAA tournament:

"Well, we talked about it today. I think the key is that when we work, we really work. When we're between the lines, we've got to get after it, we've got to work and we did that today. We had a lot of enthusiasm, we had a lot of concentration, and we got better today. I know I've said that a lot, but I really feel good about our guys' attitude. They've really looked at it as a new season. I think that's important. And then - and it started down there when they announced our name - you've got to have fun. When we're on the plane going, or we're in the hotel room, or whatever we're doing down there between now and Thursday, we've got to have fun. When we're between the lines, we're going to work, when we're not between the lines, we're going to have a lot of fun and really enjoy it. We're on spring break this week. It's great, we can really spend a lot of time together and get closer as a family."

Junior Anthony Cowan Jr.

On what his message to the team will be as he's one of the few players with NCAA tournament experience:

"First of all, don't take it for granted. Second, play with confidence. I remember my time as a freshman - coach probably also would say it - I was nervous as ever. My message to them would just be to play with confidence, do what you did all year, don't try to switch it up. Just play hard and expect to win."

On what he took away from his first NCAA tournament experience:

"Every team is good. No matter what seed you come in, every team is going to be good. Every team is going to be their best shot, just like every other team. Everybody either wins or goes home. I think you just can't take any team lightly. Even though we're the higher seed, they're still going to come out and give us their best shot. We've just got to be ready for it."

On getting to go back to the NCAA Tournament:

"Just by missing it one year, it definitely brings you a lot of joy to not get complacent and actually know that you did something worthy of getting into the tournament this year. That's the message I'm going to try and display to my teammates. I'm one of the few who's been in a tournament game so now it's just the excitement and being ready to play."

Sophomore Bruno Fernando

On if they have an "Us against the world" mentality in the NCAA Tournament:

"We have to approach it like we did at the start of the season which is: we are all we got. Obviously we have fans that support us and give us a lot of love and energy, but at the end of the day we are the ones on the court playing. As long as we keep approaching it that way and are positive around each other that's all that matters at the end of the day."

On getting in extra practice and how important it is to play better in tournament appearances:

"I think I've been locked in all year long. It is something I do all the time. I didn't just [practice] yesterday because I had a poor performance in the Big Ten tournament, I do that all the time. I just came in and try to work on the shots I need to work on in order to help my team win, so that's all I did. I wasn't really worried about the performance I had on Thursday."

On if it's easier to look ahead at the NCAA tournament instead of dwelling on the conference tournament performance:

"I personally think it is. We're going to play teams that have never played us before and they don't know much about us. Going from the regular season to the Big Ten tournament like coach said, you're playing teams that you've already played twice and they know almost everything about our system. So now we get to go and play teams that we don't know much about them and they don't know much about us. It's going to be a completely different game and we'll get a chance to do a lot of things that we weren't able to do against teams that know us so much. It's a different season, it's a new season. We're starting 0-0 and everybody's going to give us their best shot so we've got to be ready to punch back for the challenge."

On making his first NCAA Tournament appearance:

"It's my first experience at the tournament and it's definitely exciting. Like coach said, it's the fun time now. We got to be excited and we got to hear our name called. Not a lot of teams get a chance to play in the tournament so for us to be able to go there and play means a lot for us as a team. Like I said, we just have to have fun and as an individual I just have to have fun, enjoy it and help my team win a game in any way I can."

-Terps-