A tough finish for the Terps, but with All-Americans and All-Freshmen a look on the bright side
After this regular season, it would seem like not many positive things could be said about the Terps’ lackluster 18-13 season, with a disappointing 7-9 ACC record.
But after suffering through eight single-digit losses, four home losses and zero wins against AP Top 50 teams, there are a few outstanding accomplishments the Terps can take home this post-season.
Standout sophomore big man Jordan Williams earned All-America honors by Foxsports.com as well as Yahoo! Sports. Oftentimes Williams was the lone bright spot for the Terps as he carried the young squad to many wins and kept them in several close games. His single-season school record of 23 consecutive double-doubles provided excitement, hope for the future, and some rare media spotlight away from the Big East.
The 6’10 rebound magnet needs just four more boards to rank second all-time for a single season at Maryland, which would put him behind only Len Elmore who had 412 in the 1973-74 season. Along with his presence on the glass, Williams has provided the Terps with a 54.1 shooting percentage, ranking him second in the ACC, to help him to 16.9 points per game which slots him at sixth in the ACC.
His conference-leading 11.6 rebounds per game helped boost him to an All-ACC first team selection, collecting the second most votes of any player, behind just Nolan Smith from Duke. He was the only underclassmen selected on the team.
Fortunately for the Terps, the young Williams is severely undersized for an NBA big man and will almost certainly be staying all four years. The center will be the foundation of a promising young squad in the next two years.
Freshman guard Terrell Stoglin burst onto the scene this year, showing flashes of a young Greivis Vasquez with a confidence that few freshmen have and a swagger that only his Venezuelan predecessor had.
After earning consecutive ACC Rookie of the Week honors on Feb. 21 and Feb. 28, he was an easy selection onto the All-Freshmen team. Stoglin finished the season excellently, notching back-to-back 25-point games against Virgnia Tech and NC State, and tallied at least 20 in four of the last six games.
The rookie guard finished second on the team in scoring with 11.6 points per game and finally provided Williams a little relief on the scoring front.
Aside from Stoglin and Williams, Pe’Shon Howard and Haukur Paulsson showed many signs of promise for the upcoming years. Howard was much easier on the nerves with the ball than seniors Cliff Tucker and Adrian Bowie, neither of which will be missed, and Paulsson provided a rare deep-ball threat.
So while the NIT is almost a sure thing right now, there is a lot of promise for the next two to three years.
It’s not as bleak as it seems.
