University of Maryland Athletics

On Slaninka: Seven-foot freshman from local powerhouse DeMatha High School … should develop gradually after and work his way slowly into the Maryland rotation … exhibits good movement up and down the floor.

Williams on Slaninka: "Matt is interesting because he worked very hard last year and it was nice to go against a 7-4 guy in practice, when we're playing against a big team like Stanford or somebody like that. This year, I am going into the season with an open mind in terms of Matt. I'm not sure that he can't help us for a few minutes every game in what would be his freshman year, because he redshirted last year. So if he can do that, and be ready in case we get in foul trouble with our big guys, then he's going to be very valuable to us. Matt has a tremendous opportunity to develop during his career here, into a position where he can play after college, because there are very few players at that size, ever. As long as he keeps his work ethic, with which he did a good job this past year, there's no limit on what Matt can do."

2000-01: Redshirt season.

High School: Graduated from DeMatha High School in 2000 … four-year letterwinner … team co-captain who helped lead DeMatha to a consensus No. 9 national ranking while coming off the bench … ranked No. 7 in the final USA Today poll … DeMatha finished with a 28-5 record … DeMatha won the championship of the Subway Shootout International in Quebec to begin the 1999-00 season … advanced to the championship of the Glaxo Wellcome Holiday Invitational in Raleigh, N.C. … also helped lead the Stags to the championship of the Alhambra Tournament in Cumberland, Md., with three consecutive victories … a season-high 10 points against Bishop Neumann on Dec. 11 … scored seven points against Broadneck on Dec. 14 … helped DeMatha to a Washington Catholic Athletic Conference title as a sophomore, winning the city title game at Cole Field House … "After three years of waiting, Matt earned his chance as a senior. He has greatly improved his coordination and now has a very solid post game. Matt can grab almost any rebound and alter any team's offensive scheme,” said head coach Morgan Wootten … Wootten was recently inducted into the national basketball hall of fame … played on the same high school team as North Carolina's Joseph Forte and Kentucky's Keith Bogans.

Personal: Matthew R. Slaninka (pronounced SLAN-uh-kuh) … born Oct. 26, 1981 … son of Mary and Rick Slaninka … mother is a teacher … father, who played offensive tackle with the Maryland football team from 1968-70, works in advertising … majoring in letters and sciences.