Maryland Basketball: Better Than You Think

A week from now is the commencement of the Maryland basketball season as they host Northwood on the afternoon of Nov. 8. The Terps are coming off a disappointing season - again - as they were again chosen to play in the NIT instead of the NCAA tournament. Early season losses to Ohio and American (they play American again, by the way) really hurt the Terps at the end of the year, as did losing both games to fellow bubble team VT. Perhaps most important of all was the collapse at home to Clemson - blowing a 20+ point lead with less than 10 minutes left in the game.

It wasn't all bad, though, and that should be duly noted. The Terps beat UNC at UNC. Despite all of the above, the Terps were perhaps a win away from the NCAA tournament. Positive notes from last year include the elevation of play from Greivis Vasquez, who, as a sophomore, was Second Team All-ACC and had numbers to be on the first team. Landon Milbourne took a big step forward last year, too. As a freshman, he only averaged 1.0 ppg and 0.8 rpg, but last year upped his totals to 8.2 ppg and 3.5 rpg. Of course, when you think of Landon Milboune, you tend to think of this. 

However, because of last year's finish, coupled with the loss of starting power forward James Gist and center Bambale Osby, the Terps are officially projected to be 7th in the ACC (see where all the conference teams stack up here), and lower in other publications. In ESPN's Dick Vitale's preseason top 40, the Terps do not make an appearance. 

Questions abound about the program. Sportline.com's college basketball writer Gary Parrish has Gary Williams on his list of top 10 coaches to be fired. Many people are beginning to grow tired of upper-echelon recruits from Maryland leaving to go to other schools (Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Durant, Rudy Gay, and Ty Lawson are only a few examples). Many people are beginning to grow tired of the NIT appearances (3 of the past 4 years) after the team's 2002 national championship. Many people are beginning to grow tired of the top recruits that Maryland gets (Mike Jones, for example) not panning out. Many are considering this to be a make or break year for the longtime coach.  

However, after extensive thought and watching the team's intrasquad scrimmage, I've decided that Maryland turns it around this year. Here's why. 

Backcourt: One of the best in the ACC

- Eric Hayes has played the best out of every member of the team this offseason. He could always shoot, but some questioned his ability to get open and his ball control, especially during big games. The big games part we won't know about until it happens, but I can tell you that this will be a Eric Hayes we haven't seen before. He has perfected the one-hand floater and can still bomb from deep. In addition, he can take defender off the dribble, something he hasn't been able to do before. I saw him do it multiple times against Adrian Bowie, one of the Terps' fastest players and bester defenders. 

- If Hayes can successfully run the point like he has done during practice, Greivis Vasquez will be allowed to play his more natural position: shooting guard. This will take the ball out of his hands less, meaning less turnovers. However, this will also mean that his assists (he was tops in the ACC last year) might also decrease. Nonetheless, this is the better position for Vasquez because of how well he slashes to the basket. He is not a terrific shooter, but when he gets hot, he can knock 'em down. 

- The bench is what makes this backcourt so great, though. Besides Hayes, the best player in the scrimmages has been Cliff Tucker. He has not been solid defensively, which irks - to say the least - Gary Williams. He has shown quickness and athleticism I didn't know he had, though, and has been knocking down his jumpers from everywhere.

- Adrian Bowie is still afraid to shoot the ball, and doesn't run the offense that well. However, his quickness allows him to be lethal in transition, and one of the Terps' better defenders.

- Sean Mosley is the real question mark. He hasn't done too much in the scrimmages, but will certainly get better throughout the season. Right now, he is one thing that the Terps really lack: a solid, reliable player. He won't have many turnovers, he'll stick to his guy defensively, and he'll knock down a jumper. He needs to get more involved in the offense.

Frontcourt: They won't score, but you may have a tough time scoring against them.

- Of course, this group took a huge hit with the losses of Osby, Gist, and top recruit/transfer Gus Gilchrist. Those losses hurt less than you think, though, when you look closely at the numbers. 

- Jerome Burney this year will play the role of Bambale Osby. Osby had 11.5 ppg and 6.5 rpg, as well as 69 blocks. Jerome Burney will match those numbers. He has looked like a monster on the defensive end, blocking 6 shots in the latest scrimmage. His height (6'9) and athleticism will allow him to be near double digit rebounds every game. 

- Landon Milbourne and Braxton Dupree will play the role of James Gist. Gist put up big stats last year: 16 ppg, 8 rpg, 77 blocks. Gist, and this went largely unnoticed, largely disappeared when it mattered, though. Consider his 8 points against Ohio. Consider his 3 points and 4 rebounds against American. I will give him credit for his strong performances against UNC and the first time against Duke, but where was he at the end of the year? 7 points vs. VT, 10 points at Miami, a 31 point explosion against Wake, and then shooting less than 50% for 15 against Clemson. 

Meanwhile, Milbourne has impressed me. He's 6'7, but plays taller because of how tall he can jump. He can also knock down the outside jumper much better than Gist. If they put Milbourne as a power forward, he will also be much quicker than those he's matched up against and should be able to drive past them from the perimeter. 

He'll hold his own defensively, but that is where Braxton Dupree steps in. Nobody will make bigger strides this season than Braxton. He was making progress towards the end of the first semester last year, but then dropped off after showing up well overweight after Christmas. He's in shape, now, however, and Gary Williams has made sure of it. In the previous scrimmage, the team played four 10-minute segments of the black team having 7 players and the red team having 5. Gary kept switching the teams so some players could get rest. The only player who he kept on the red team all four times? Braxton Dupree. He'll be a force defensively, and if he develops some moves offensively, it will just be a bonus.

- Newcomer Steve Goins has size, but is unpolished and probably won't get much playing time.

- Dave Neal will be Dave Neal. Don't make fun; he will play a key role on this team. 

Intangibles: All of them

- Gary Williams is feeling the heat.

- This isn't the first, and won't be the last, time that Gary will overachieve with his talent.

- This is an embarrassed team. They came to play for Maryland, not Florida State. They know they need to be better. 

- Comcast Center will rock it this year. Everyone knows how important of a season this is. 

Bottom Line: You heard it here first, the Terps get back in the dance. 

- There is little lost from last year's team that won't be adequately replaced this year.

- A very young team last year is a whole year more experienced.

- Vasquez won't have to play point, and will be the leader that Gist should have been. 

- Projected starting lineup: 

PG: Hayes, backed up by Bowie

SG: Vasquez: backed up by Mosley

SF: Milbourne, backed up by Cliff Tucker

PF: Dupree, backed up Neal

C: Burney, backed up by a rotation

- Other lineups I see involve three guards with Vasquez at the 3; a three guard lineup with Milbourne at the 4 and Dupree at the 5; 4 guard lineup with Burney at center. Not lying. 

- The keys will be if Hayes can play a solid point guard for the entire year, and whether Milbourne can defend against power forwards in the ACC. I think they will.

Prediction: 21-9 (9-7)

(Photo Credits: AP and The Washington Post)

My Long Overdue Post on the Phillies

Let's be real here for a second. I do not have access to players or coaches for interviews. I was not in Philadelphia to see Game 7, or any game for that matter. There is nothing I can tell you specifically about the game that ESPN has not already, or that you probably did not notice for yourself. So, because of that, here are my quick-hit thoughts on the series itself, how it was covered, and the reaction. 

1. The city of Philadelphia does not read this blog. That was a joke. But seriously. In case you missed it, earlier in the week, I posted about how Philadelphia's first championship since the 76ers in 1983 was diminished.  Philly didn't care, and why would they? No matter how it went down, the fact will remain the same: The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2008 World Series, and they celebrated it like none other. The entire city was out in the streets many hours past the end of the game. They celebrated like they had every right to. But, speaking of Philadelphia ...

2. Philadelphia fans really are that obnoxious. If you watched the post-game coverage, you know exactly what I'm talking about. They booed - about three different times - the man who was presenting them with the World Series trophy. Look, Bud Selig leaves a lot to be desired, but you just won the World Series. Can't you be happy? For once? 

3. According to ESPN, the Rays lost the World Series. My roommate had to point this out to me about 19 times before I finally started believing: ESPN has more than just a Red Sox-Yankees-Cowboys-Sidney Crosby-Duke basketball-USC football bias. It extended to the Rays. Or maybe it was just a bias against the Phillies. Who knows? But I digress.

The fact remains the same that the story ESPN was pushing before, during, and after the series was not a championship for Philadelphia, but a loss for the Rays. 

Before the World Series, you could have watched Baseball Tonight for a good 15 minutes and not realized that the Phillies were even playing in it. It was the Rays' Cinderella season, the Rays' never-give-up attitude, the Rays' triumph over Boston. All the Phillies had done was cruise through a terrible National League.

During the World Series, even when Philly went up 1-0, then 2-1, then 3-1, it was never "The Phillies are getting closer to history." It was always "What do the Rays have to do to get their bats going again?" Forget how good the Phillies pitching was. The worst was leading up to Game 5b. What we were supposed to watch for was not whether Philadelphia would celebrate their first championship in 25 years; no, the most important thing was to watch young phenom David Price work his magic. 

Then, after the game, there was far too little "These Phillies really were terrific" and far too much "The Rays had a great season." That stuff should be saved for a few days. Let Philadelphia soak it all in. 

4. Pitching and defense really does win you championships. Case in point. It was just that nobody thought Philadelphia would have more of both. The key plays: Iwamura mishandles a bloop fly ball that knocks in a Phillies run. Chase Utley is alert in the field and goes home with a ball that saves a run. Feliz hits a ground ball that would normally be an out, but because the Rays were playing in, squirts up the middle to knock in another run. It wasn't shown in the highlight video, but in the 8th, with a man on, Utley and Rollins put together a perfectly executed double play to get the impossibly fast B.J. Upton out. Then, in the 9th, it was Brad Lidge's destructive slider.

Congratulations to the Phillies. Tampa, you will be around a long time. Right now, though, it's all about Philadelphia. 

(Photo Credits: AP)

Mike Singletary Went Too Far

Odds are you've seen Mike Singletary's rant during his post-game press conference. If for some reason you haven't, you can watch it here.

I feel hypocritical because I, like you in all likelihood, had the immediate reaction of "That's awesome!" when I first saw this video. And, in a way, I still think so. It's refreshing to hear a coach in the NFL speak his mind. All over the place, you have tumult going on in NFL locker rooms that isn't exposed.

A perfect example is the situation in Baltimore. All John Harbaugh will say is that "Chris McAlister has a bad knee." That was the reason he didn't play in a single preseason game. That was why he barely practiced during training camp. Was that why, in his first four games of the year, he absolutely shut down Chad Johnson (1 catch for 22 yards), Braylon Edwards (3 catches for 27 yards), Hines Ward (2 catches for 57 yards) and Justin Gage (0 catches), all the while getting three interceptions in that span? No. McAlister is fine, he just made Harbaugh angry because he didn't want to play in training camp. Harbaugh is doing everyone a disservice by not coming out and saying the exact reason McAlister is being disciplined. It's getting hard to ignore, as he was inactive for this past Sunday's game against the Raiders. 

All that aside, let me explain to you why what Mike Singletary did was wrong. Mike Singletary called Vernon Davis off the field after the penalty. Completely acceptable.

After Davis got to the bench - without mouthing off to his coach - Singletary went after him again. It was a stupid penalty, and Singletary wanted to let him know who was in charge. Completely acceptable.

I start to take issue with what happened next. Davis went to a new seat and Singletary went back to his business. Singletary then sought him out and rounded on him a third time, this time telling him to hit the showers. Coach your team, don't focus your energy on one player. Also, don't treat the one player like he is a kid in high school. This is a grown man, a professional athlete. Treat him with respect. 

Then, there was the press conference. How long did Singletary have that planned? It seemed like a planned speech that he delivered while on a crazy power trip. 

It's not like Davis was being a prima donna the entire game. It went unnoticed, but watch this (go to 1:00 in). Davis is actually the only 49er who cares enough to run after Josh Wilson when he makes the interception. You can distinctly see number 83, Arnaz Battle, just give up. 

Plus, learn the rules. You don't get penalized for playing with ten players. That kind of thing just irritates me. 

(Photo Credit: AP)

Phillies' Glory Soured

The entire city of Philadelphia should have celebrated their first championship since 1983 last night. Instead, the sell-out crowd at Citizens Bank Park went away soaked and unsatisfied. Sadly, the rain is only the tip of the iceberg. 

The series, for starters, is not drawing any ratings. The truth is that baseball relies on their ratings coming from the two teams' markets. Nothing against the Philadelphia market; I expect they're holding their end. I have a hard team believing that Tampa is doing the same, though. The Tampa Cinderella story was the main story line promoted by ESPN coming into the game, as well. After so long, though, it got old. 

Second, the umpiring has been absolutely abysmal. I've never seen more wide strike zones in my life. It actually seems like the area of the strike zone is the same; the dimensions are just different. There's been no leniency with high and low, but if it gets within the height, it's going to be called a strike. 

Then, there was the Longoria call. It's one thing if the ump is far away and can't make the call. He was right there, though. If there's one thing this series will give us, it may be an expansion of instant replay.

Third, overall shoddy play. The Phillies have pitched well, but you can't give them all the credit for Longoria/Pena going 0-29. The Phillies are up 3-1 in the series despite having something like three hits with RISP the entire series. 

Fourth, the rain situation. Thank goodness the Rays scored that second run. 

There were so many variables that lead to good choices or bad choices, so I'm going to run through them now, and whether it was a good call or bad call.

A. The game was played to begin with. Bad call. Give a 6-year-old a five minute lesson on how to read a Doppler Radar. He could have told you there was no way this game should have been played. This isn't football. This isn't soccer. The fact that the game was played in that weather was a disservice to Philadelphia fans and to the players themselves, who easily could have been hurt.

B. The game wasn't called around the third, when the intensity really picked up. Bad call. Before it got to give, just end it. Both starters would only go a few innings and would be available on only a few days later in the series. Then, you wouldn't have to deal with the whole "They played their five and were up" nonsense.

C. The game was not called until Tampa tied it. The only good call. Bud Selig said that if it weren't tied, then the game would go to rain delay until the umpires saw fit. I'm talking 24 hour rain delay. Players sleeping in the clubhouse. It would have been an absolute fiasco (more than it already was), and there would have been 100 people in the ballpark to see the end. 

You just have to feel for Philadelphia fans. They've been waiting for this for so long. Their team is stacked, and the World Series is theirs. Odds are, they will still eventually win this, and Philadelphia will go insane. The memories won't be looked upon fondly by any other fans, though. It will be even worse than Super Bowl XL,  which is now known basically for its terrible refereeing. 

Poor Philadelphia.

(Photo Credits: AP)

Looking Back

With so many sports going on at once, how can you keep track of them all? You don't have to, but I will. Every Monday* I will look back and hit briefly upon the five story lines that stuck out from the previous weekend.

* Editor's note: I know it's Tuesday, and there are a few things in here for which I will say "look for it later." Look, I'm a student like you. I get busy. It will come.

1. The Philadelphia Phillies can pitch. Just look at the stat of the week. They've been absolutely abysmal with runners in scoring position, but it just goes to show that baseball can be traced back down to one golden rule: If you have pitching and defense, you can win almost every game. The Phillies have had a tremendous amount of both.

Look Tuesday and Wednesday for my World Series update and my thoughts on the rain situation.

2. Terps' ACC chances: Why not? They, like so many others, control their own destiny. I know they have a brutal schedule coming up: At VT, home for FSU and UNC, and on the road against always tough BC. This is a team that's a bit of a head case, though, and that's why I think they will win the ACC. Let me explain that.

If the Terps win the ACC Atlantic, they will win the ACC championship. In my opinion, UVA is going to fall off. They've done enough to establish that Maryland's loss to them was not a terrible loss by any means, but I think they will start to lose again. The next two contenders for the Coastal will be VT and UNC. If Maryland wins the Atlantic, it will be because they beat both of those teams. Maryland is the type of team that you can just tell says to itself, "Well I beat you once, I can do it again." Just my thoughts.

I'm not sure Maryland will win at VT next Thursday, but I do think they will win out at home. If they do, they will make it to the championship game. The FSU game is the important one.

3. BCS trouble is brewing. The BCS right now is absolutely praying that Penn State does not win out. If they do, there may be a fiasco.

The best case scenario is that Texas wins out, Penn State wins out, and Alabama loses bad to somebody they shouldn't.

After that, it gets scary. If UT, Bama, and PSU all win out, PSU is the third man there and doesn't play in the national championship. 

If Texas loses, for example to Texas Tech this week, assuming that Texas Tech doesn't win out, the only two BCS teams undefeated would be Alabama and PSU. However, if Texas loses in close fashion and beats the snot out of everyone else they play, there's a strong chance Texas plays in the national championship ahead of Penn State anyway.

If Alabama loses, but USC starts beating everyone by 50 again, there's a chance they could move ahead of PSU as well.

Of course, this not to mention the fact that Utah, Ball State, and Tulsa are all undefeated as well.

4. Predict for me right now who will be in the playoffs in the AFC, because you can only choose 6 out of 13 teams that are still very much in the hunt. Plus, there is only one guarantee. (It's the 7-0 team.)

What about Pittsburgh, you say? Let's say they lose at Washington on Monday night, which is certainly very plausible. And let's say the Ravens win at Cleveland this week, which is certainly very plausible. All of a sudden, the Steelers are only a game up on the Ravens, and have yet to play in Baltimore. (Pitt hasn't swept the season series since 2002.)

New England actually looks in the best position out of everyone else. At least they're finding a rhythm. Buffalo just lost to Miami. Nobody in the AFC West can play defense. It's kinda crazy.

Last note here: there are only 7 teams in the conference with a winning record right now. If the playoffs ended today, either the Jets or the Ravens would get in at 4-3 (please don't ask me to do tiebreakers.) That means that the Dolphins, Browns, Colts, Jags, Texans, and Chargers are only one game out with three wins. It's anybody's race.

Except for the Bengals, Chiefs, and Raiders.

5. The NFC BEast is back. Dallas beats a good Tampa team on the road. Philadelphia beats a good Atlanta team, and shows how good their offense can be with Brian Westbrook. The Skins didn't make it look pretty, but got the job done against the Lions. All the Giants did was waltz into Heinz Field and 

thoroughly outplay the Steelers. 

Because they might beat themselves up, the NFC South could still sneak in a wild card team. The NFC East removed all doubt this weekend, though, as to whether they were slipping. 

It Could All Be Over

Tonight, the Phillies and Rays meet for what could be the final game of the 2008 Major League Baseball season. This World Series has been a letdown for many fans - the Rays were America's darling after their magical turnaround and playoff run - but not for me.

It's been tough to watch each and every inning, and I admit that I have not been able to. But what I have seen has been great. Cole Hamels has emerged as one of the best active playoff pitchers. Jimmy Rollins has proven that he is the key to everything that the Phillies do. Ryan Howard and Chase Utley have finally woken up. Even Joe Blanton has elevated his game - he even managed to hit his first career home run.

And, amazing, the Phillies have scored runs. The first three games, they struggled to score. They began the series inept at clutch hitting, but still managed to score runs. Small ball is still alive, even with a team like the Phillies.

The Rays, however, have finally run out of gas. Thier two best hitters - Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria - have gone 0-for-series (0-29 combined). That's right, not one...single..hit. That's not to say they're bad hitters. Far from it. Longoria is young (he's 23 in his first big league season) and Pena is a pure power hitter (.247 average during the season with 166 K's). The Phillies have just adjusted and exposed their weaknesses.

Because of that, the Phillies are 27 outs away from winning the World Series. They are the best team in baseball. And the Rays, who had baseball's storybook season, are right there with them. Next year, they could be a scary team. Let's just hope tonight's game 5 is as exciting as the other games this season.

Power Rankings: Week 8

I've pretty much laid out the guidelines for my power rankings in past weeks. So, here it is for Week 8.

1. Tennessee Titans (last week: 1; change: 0): I'll do you a favor. If the Titans lose at the Colts tonight, flip them and the Giants. That's all I will drop them. 

2. New York Giants (2; 0): Well, that settled the number 2 team debate. They beat the Steelers at Heinz Field, and with a little better red zone play, it wouldn't have been close.

3. Carolina Panthers (7; +4): They leapfrog the Steelers, Bills, and Bucs, who all lost. They also leapfrog the Redskins, for reasons explained below.

4. Washington Redskins (5; +1): They won, but in ugly fashion - again. They have to play better if they want to beat the Steelers this week.

5. Pittsburgh Steelers (3; -2): Big Ben has to take care of the ball better for this team to succeed. He has grown dramatically as a quarterback, but this should still be a ball-control offense.

6. Buffalo Bills (4; -2): A setback against the Dolphins this week. They're now tied with the Patriots, who seem to be getting more and more momentum. They have a big divisional matchup against the Jets this week.

7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6; -1): They don't deserve to be this high; I know. I just have problems punishing a team too much for one individual game.

8. Green Bay Packers (8; 0): Don't expect me to drop the Packers too low after next week if they lose at Tennessee.

9. New England Patriots (19; +10): So they gained 10 in one week. A culmination of them destroying Denver on Monday night and them beating the Rams, who were my upset special of the week, convinced me. They're not championship caliber, but they're certainly playoff caliber.

10. Philadelphia Eagles (10; +2): How much of a difference does Brian Westbrook make on this team?

11. Chicago Bears (11; 0): They have a trap game versus Detroit this week before Tennessee comes to town. 

12. Arizona Cardinals (12; -2): That was a loss in Carolina that validated them. Were it not for some shoddy special teams play, they could have won that game.

13. Atlanta Falcons (13; -4): A loss that drops them four, but you have to give them credit for playing with the Eagles. Roddy White is spectacular.

14. Dallas Cowboys (16; +2): I cautiously move them up 2 after a victory against a good Tampa Bay team. Why are they now the same the record, but Dallas is still 7 spots behind them? If Romo were their quarterback right now, I would think differently.

15. Indianapolis Colts (15; 0): Win or lose tonight, they wouldn't move within two places either side of this until they show me some consistency.

16. Baltimore Ravens (16; +2): You have to love it when Flacco and Smith are on the field at the same time. 

17. Jacksonville Jaguars (13; -4): They confuse me. A lot. This is very similar to the Tampa-Dallas situation, where Team A and Team B have the same records. Team B just beat Team A at home. Team B is still a ways behind Team A, though. I do this because Jacksonville's been in every game, and Cleveland's only played two good games all season. I have no qualms.

18. New Orleans Saints (20; +2): A win huge for them to get right back in it in the NFC South. I'm not sure the English really cared, though.

19. Denver Broncos (14; -5): They move down 5 spots (which might be friendly) after their Monday night debacle.

20. San Diego Chargers (17; -3): They're still in okay position to make the playoffs because of their division. This has to be a disappointing year for them nonetheless.

21. New York Jets (21; 0): I couldn't figure out where to move them, so I didn't. They won, which I can't punish them for. (Ignore the fact I punished Houston for it last week.) I will tell you, though, the following three teams really pushed them for this spot.

22. Miami Dolphins (22; 0): They got a big win to preserve their playoff chances. If they get a couple wins in coming weeks, they're right in the middle of it.

23. Cleveland Browns (26; +3): I'm stunned they beat Jacksonville at Jacksonville, but maybe I shouldn't be. They could be getting on a roll. We'll have a better assessment after they host Baltimore this week.

24. Houston Texans (27; +3): Their last two games have been against the worst two teams in the league. At least they played better against the Bengals. 

25. Minnesota Vikings (23; -2): They drop two in their bye week because of how impressive the Browns and Texans were last week.

26. St. Louis Rams (24; -2): Is Jim Haslett a good head coach, or was Scott Linehan just that bad?

27. Oakland Raiders (25; -2): The Raiders still have ways to go. But I'm impressed with Russell. 

28. Seattle Seahawks (29; +1): They bump up one for beating the 49ers. Just because.

29. San Francisco 49ers (28; -1): More on the Mike Singletary rant on this blog later.

30. Kansas City Chiefs (30; 0): Larry Johnson should be ashamed. Talk about a waste of talent.

31. Cincinnati Bengals (31; 0): I don't care how bad they played against the Texans, or how close the Lions came to the Redskins.

32. Detroit Lions (32; 0): The Lions are still my pick to go winless.

Division Standings: No change in the top 4, though the AFC East almost took number 3 this week. A couple flip flops from there, as Cleveland and Baltimore's jumps move the AFC North into 5th. The AFC West unseats the NFC West for last; it hurts when your best team is ranked 19th. 

1. NFC East (average rank: 7.50)

2. NFC South (10.25)

3. AFC South (14.25)

4. AFC East (14.50)

5. AFC North (18.75)

6. NFC North (19.00)

7. NFC West (23.75)

8. AFC West (24.00)