For Maryland, Four on the Floor Drive the Engine

It's not often that big-time college basketball teams have four experienced top-of-the-line players anymore; somebody is bound to leave early for the pros. But Maryland has four of the nation's most talented players at their positions in Juan Dixon, Lonny Baxter, Steve Blake and Chris Wilcox, and a defensive pit bull in Byron Mouton. And though none of them played particularly well individually here in the Carrier Dome on Friday night, a little something from everybody was enough to beat Kentucky and get Maryland back to an NCAA tournament regional final.

The Terrapins could never separate themselves from Kentucky; no one Maryland player caught fire or owned the game defensively in the 78-68 victory. At times, it even appeared the Terps were still having problems playing as the favorite, what with the way they threw errant passes all over the court. Blake couldn't possibly play any worse. Yet, this may be of some consolation since Blake is bent on returning to form Sunday, and on deck for Maryland is No. 2 seed Connecticut with a trip to the Final Four at stake.

It wasn't automatic down the stretch for Maryland either. The Terrapins won without making a basket (until 4.4 seconds remained) for the final six-plus minutes of the game, and they escaped with an assist from Kentucky, which committed a bushel full of mistakes the final three minutes.

But ultimately in March, a team has to stick and move, win and survive. That's something two other No. 1 seeds -- Duke and Cincinnati -- failed to do. And since Maryland hasn't played a great game yet in this tournament, perhaps the Terrapins have just that in store for U-Conn. and Caron Butler on Sunday in the East Region final. Maryland, for the first time in school history, has reached the regional final in consecutive seasons.

Thing is, Kentucky has a history of not just reaching the round of 16, not just getting to these games, but winning them. Guess what school has won more games than any other in college basketball? Yes, that would be Kentucky, ahead of North Carolina and Kansas. When the Kentucky players practice everyday in Lexington, they do so under seven national championship banners, 13 Final Four banners, 23 Southeastern Conference tournament banners, which adds up to 43 banners of consequence. You know how many such banners Marylandhas hanging in Cole Field House? Three, representing one from last year's Final Four and two from ACC tournaments. That's it, three.

And what it means year after year after year is that Kentucky expects to win, knows it will win regardless of the opponent, goes about the business of basketball with none of the uncertainty and even neuroses that have long plagued Maryland basketball.

Kids come to Maryland hoping to reach the Final Four; kids come to Kentucky expecting to reach the Final Four. Even Maryland Coach Gary Williams said leading up to this game, "Kentucky knows how to get ready for big games because they play a lot of big games. They don't duck anybody during the year. I'm sure they'll be ready to play. That's the thing we tried to do the last eight or nine years was get our program up so we can get ready to play these big games."

The great irony Friday night was that the Terps had to go through a kid who played his high school ball in the state of Maryland, only a mile away from Cole Field House. Of course, Maryland had to worry about Tayshaun Prince; the kid scored 41 points to lead Kentucky over Tulsa in the second round of this tournament. Prince is going to the NBA when he leaves here because he's got perimeter skills in a 6-foot-9 inch body. But the kid who ought to have scared Maryland to death was Keith Bogans, a kid who grew up in Alexandria. After declaring himself available for the NBA draft last year, then coming to his senses, the kid had just a terrible season. He shot just 39 percent for the season, only 26 percent in the Kentucky losses. This was after being second-team all-SEC as a sophomore a season ago.

But he appeared to be reborn in this postseason. Bogans scored 21 points in the first-round game against Valparaiso, then 19 against Tulsa. He had to be feeling over the moon to begin with, then he gets an opportunity to play against his boys, guys he knows and sees over the summer getting all the glory where he actually lives.

So it shouldn't have come as any surprise that Bogans was juiced early. He hit a three-pointer to stake Kentuckyto a 5-0 lead, another three-pointer to make it 8-2. And after Maryland had taken the lead, Bogans scored a three-point play the old-fashioned way, a bucket plus the foul shot to push the Wildcats back into the lead, 15-14. Not only that, but at 6-5 he made it difficult for the 6-2 Dixon to get off his jump shot. The last thing a favored team wants to do is play a kid from back home on a mission.

But Bogans cooled off, Prince missed seemingly the same shots he'd made all tournament. Maybe he was tired from being harassed by Mouton. Prince and Bogans did pull Kentucky into a back-and-forth game Maryland surely didn't want to get involved in. Even worse for Maryland, Kentuckywas just pounding the ball inside for short shots and tip-in attempts. And the Wildcats were able to keep it close right until the end by getting the ball to 6-9 Marquis Estill and 7- foot Jules Camara whenever possible.

But Maryland managed to keep its season alive for another game, meaning one day soon it might be able to look at the box scores and videotapes from Friday night's game, which wasn't its best, wince and laugh.

Copyright The Washington Post Company March 23, 2002

Defense Gets in Gear, and Terps' Motor Runs

For the first time in more than a quarter century, Maryland found itself the last Atlantic Coast Conference team still alive in the NCAA basketball tournament tonight. After beating Kentucky, 78-68, Maryland will continue its season, meeting Connecticut on Sunday at 5:10 p.m. with a trip to the Final Four in Atlanta at stake.

Maryland had its hands full all night with a talented Wildcats team that has been erratic all season, frequently losing close games, or overtime contests, to top-quality foes. The Terrapins were frequently outrebounded by the tall Wildcats. But balanced scoring, with 19 points from Juan Dixon and 16 from Lonny Baxter, helped Maryland keep Kentucky at arm's length in the final minutes.

For Maryland, which has spent nearly a generation watching other ACC teams gain the greatest glory, this was a delicious night in the so-called Sweet 16. For the first time since 1975, there's not a Duke Blue Devil or North Carolina Tar Heel still in the NCAA hunt while Maryland plays on. The North Carolina State Wolfpack and Virginia Cavaliers have packed up their gear for the season. Wake Forest and Georgia Tech are gone, too. All those teams have been the last-standing representative of the powerhouse ACC since Maryland last carried the banner alone.

Last season, Maryland reached the Final Four and established its credentials as a potential national champion -- one among several. However, another of Coach Gary Williams's goals has now been accomplished -- if only for one season. In the event that matters most, Maryland is the ACC's best.

Maryland's delight in playing tonight was only approached by its glee that arch-nemesis Duke was upset Thursday by Indiana, 74-73. The hotel where the Terrapins stay was filled with Maryland fans. Many rooms have balconies facing an interior courtyard. The instant Duke's Carlos Boozer missed a last-second put-back attempt, a huge cheer erupted throughout the hotel. Fans, both in the courtyard and leaning from the balconies, chanted, "Maryland, Maryland" for minutes.

Then, tonight, those fans had a pep rally for the Terrapins in the courtyard. "Lots of spirit," said Catholic University Coach Mike Lonergan, who is here cheering for Maryland. "They've got a real shot at the title. Experienced leadership, a great bench. They haven't had a single loss all year that's really hurt their confidence."

Even though the defending national champion Blue Devils, who eliminated Maryland in the NCAA semifinals last season, have been erased, Terrapins fans last night were acutely aware of how difficult the road to a title would probably be. Last season, Marylandwas fortunate enough to play a No. 14, 11 and 10 seed in its first three games. This year, thanks to its No. 1 seeding, Maryland advanced against modest competition -- a No. 16 and 8 seed.

"Duke's gone. But look what's ahead of us," said Maryland fan Will Mayer before last night's game at the Carrier Dome. "If we beat Kentucky, then we play Connecticut. In the Final Four, we might have to beat Kansas and Oklahoma. They say, 'To be the best, you've got to play the best.' "

Mayer's father Bill, a former dean of the Maryland business school who holds two Maryland degrees, has been a Terrapins fan since 1965. So, he knows plenty about dashed hopes and premature expectations. While his son says, "This is the best chance Maryland's ever had . . . Everything feels right," the father says he's just rooting one game at a time.

"I don't want to jinx anything," says Bill Mayer. After cheering for the same team for 37 years, perhaps you're allowed to guard your emotions.

Until last season, the round of 16 had been Maryland's Achilles' Heel for more than a quarter century. Seven straight times between 1975 and 2001, the Terps could not get past this hurdle. In fact, Williams had lost in the first game of the regionals in '94, '95, '98 and '99 to Michigan, Connecticut, Arizona and St. John's.

Perhaps as a result, Maryland's fans and those of Kentucky (which owns seven national titles), approached this night quite differently. During the evening's first game, in which Connecticut beat Southern Illinois, 71-59, almost every seat in the Terrapins' section was occupied. About half the Kentucky seats were empty. Been here, done this. If Kentucky's not playing, who cares?

The Wildcats showed their classy pedigree as Maryland made many of its trademark runs, trying to build a significant lead, but Kentucky always pulled back even. Maryland pulled out to a 29-22 lead, then led 39-33 at half. But, with 14 minutes left to play, the teams were tied at 51.

In the second half, Baxter repeatedly used his bulk to barge to the basket for short hook shots and lay-ups, scoring 14 points in the second half. If slender 7-foot Jules Camara was going to take advantage of him for offensive rebounds at one end, Baxter would get his own back at the other end of the court.

It's said that teams that win national titles almost always have a narrow escape, a poorly-played game which they win, somewhere along the way. Whether or not Maryland finally wins the first title in its 91-year basketball history still remains moot. But it is a certainty that they dodged a bullet as big as a basketball tonight in a performance that ranked far below their best.

Copyright The Washington Post Company March 23, 2002