The Maryland Terrapins have been a regular NCAA Tournament program under head coach Mark Turgeon. The complaint from College Park in recent years is that talented Maryland teams have not fully come together. The Terrapins have often been collections of individuals rather than a seamlessly blended group which became much more than the sum of its parts. Even when the Terps made the Sweet 16 in 2016, it was felt by many that the team did not reach its potential. Some celebrated recruits and some high-buzz transfers were not able to maximize their impact on the court.
Maryland is not the kind of program which harbors realistic Final Four expectations each season. If the Terrapins can get to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament, they generally think they are on the right track, though the equally important concern is that when they have a lot of talent, it comes together. That has been a point of inconsistency. What will this team have in store for its fans?
Offseason Changes
The Terps didn’t have to worry about this for three years, but they have to worry now: Melo Trimble will no longer be a part of this team, as he seeks a professional career. Trimble removed so many problems and sources of stress for Maryland and Turgeon. He did all the ballhandling and he was able to create shots for teammates. He wanted the ball at the end of the game. Trimble drew the attention of defenses so that if they came up to double-team him and get the ball out of his hands, he was usually able to find a teammate for a good look. Trimble got to the basket with regularity, and his skill at finishing plays meant that he had to be guarded not just as a quick player, but as a crafty player whose right hand needed to be taken away. Without Trimble, Maryland will be starting from scratch on offense and will need to find ways to move the ball fluidly without worrying about turnovers.
Will Succeed If…
Freshmen Bruno Fernando and teammate Daryll Morsell can step forward. With Trimble gone, Maryland won’t be able to route its offense or structure its halfcourt plays through one person to the diminishment of others. This will be much more of a team offense, less dependent on one individual for production. Getting freshmen to play at or near expectations is consistently the kind of development which rescues a team in need of ample contributions from its roster. If the freshman situation is good for Maryland, any of the other deficiencies this roster might have will be diminished.
Won’t Succeed If…
The offense becomes discombobulated and out of sync with Trimble no longer there to make sure everything is okay. It is one thing for a team to have a great point guard in one season but not the next. However, Maryland has relied on one point guard for all its ballhandling for three years. This means the Terps must go through a more prolonged and complicated adjustment process. The risk is there for this team to lose all sense of how to move the ball in the halfcourt and not slide into bad habits, such as a lot of one-on-one hero-ball.
Roster
Sean Obi
Anthony Cowan
Kevin Huerter
Dion Wiley
Darryl Morsell
Jared Nickens
Reese Mona
Ivan Bender
Michal Cekovsky
Travis Valmon
Justin Jackson
Bruno Fernando
Andrew Terrell
Alex Tostado
Joshua Tomaic
Schedule & Outlook
Butler and Syracuse are the notable non-conference opponents. The Syracuse showdown will be on the road on November 27th on ESPN2. The Butler game will be an early test against Butler on November 15th.
Losing Trimble is a huge loss. Maryland has enough returning talent to finish in the top 10 of the Big Ten, but being good enough to make the NCAA Tournament is a question which will be answered as the season moves along. Maryland seems to be a bubble team this season.
The 2018 March Madness futures are out. There has been plenty of news to keep up with in the offseason but keep an eye on the betting lines as they move around at Diamond Sportsbook! Get the latest college basketball betting lines right here.
