Terps will play six home games in 2012, including matchups with Florida State, Georgia Tech and Connecticut

GREENSBORO, N.C. – The 2012 Maryland football schedule, which includes league home games against Florida State and Georgia Tech, and a nonconference tilt with Connecticut, was announced jointly Monday by the Atlantic Coast Conference and the University.

Maryland will open 2012 season, the second under head coach Randy Edsall, on Saturday, Sept. 1 with a game against William & Mary, the first of six home contests.

The Terps, who face eight bowl teams from last year, will not play consecutive road or home games throughout 2012.

After a road trip to Temple on Sept. 8, the Terps return home on Sept. 15 to face Connecticut, where Edsall spent 12 years as head coach.

The Terps will face interstate rival West Virginia on Sept. 22 in Morgantown. Maryland and WVU will be facing each other for the third straight year after taking two years off in the series.

Maryland will enjoy a bye (Sept. 29) before entering conference play with a home game against Wake Forest (Oct. 6).

The Terps will play at border rival Virginia on Oct. 13 before facing a pair of Atlantic Division foes in NC State (Oct. 20 at home) and Boston College (Oct. 27 on the road).

Georgia Tech then visits College Park for the first time since 2007 on Nov. 3 and a road game against defending Atlantic Division champion Clemson follows on Nov. 10.

The Terrapins will face Florida State on Nov. 17, the final home contest for its senior class, before closing out the regular season at North Carolina on Nov. 26. The Terps and Tar Heels have not faced each other since 2008.

Game times will be announced at a later date. League home games are selected on a 12-day option by ESPN or the ACC Network. During the season, ESPN can choose certain ACC games on a six-day window. Times for early-season nonconference home games are announced in the summer.

Season tickets are now available for purchase and renewal.  A variety of season ticket options are available starting as low as $114. There are also family 4-packs available for $420 and season-ticket holders have the ability to spread their cost over six monthly installments.

Fans can purchase tickets by going to www.umterps.com or by calling the Terrapin Ticket Office at (301) 314-7070 or 1-800-IMA-TERP. Single-game tickets will be available at a later date.

2012 Schedule

Sept. 1    William & Mary

Sept. 8    @ Temple

Sept. 15   Connecticut

Sept. 22   @ West Virginia

Sept. 29   Open

Oct. 6      Wake Forest

Oct. 13    @ Virginia

Oct. 20    NC State

Oct. 27    @ Boston College

Nov. 3     Georgia Tech

Nov. 10    @ Clemson

Nov. 17    Florida State

Nov. 24    @ North Carolina

Home games in bold and played at Capital One Field at Byrd Stadium; Times are TBA

Schedule Notes:

• Nine bowl teams from last year appear on Maryland’s 2012 schedule: West Virginia (Discover Orange Bowl), Temple (Gilden New Mexico Bowl), Wake Forest (Franklin American Mortgage Music City), Virginia (Chick-fil-A Bowl), NC State (Belk Bowl), Georgia Tech (Hyundai Sun Bowl), Clemson (Discover Orange Bowl), Florida State (Champs Sports Bowl) and North Carolina (AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl).
• Maryland and William & Mary will be meeting for the fifth time. The series is even at 2-all. The last meeting occurred in 2006 with the Terps posting a 27-14 victory in College Park. The teams hadn’t met since 1946.
• Maryland leads the all-time series with Temple, 6-1. The Owls won their first game in the series last season, downing the Terps, 38-7.
• Maryland and West Virginia are playing for the third straight season after taking two years off in the series. The two schools met annually from 1980 to 2007. The Mountaineers hold a 25-21-2 advantage in a series that dates back to 1919.
• Connecticut and Maryland will be meeting for the just the second time. The Terps downed the Huskies, 34-0, in 1946. Randy Edsall was the head coach at UConn from 1999-2010.
• Maryland owns a 42-17-1 advantage in the series against Wake Forest, including victories in nine of the last 13. The Terps have won five of the last six in College Park.
• The Terps lead the all-time series with Virginia, 42-32-2. Maryland has won two of the last three in Charlottesville.
• The all-time series with NC State is tied, 32-32-4. The Terps have won eight of the last 12 in the series.
• Boston College leads the all-time series 6-3. Maryland and Boston College met for the first time in 21 years in Massachusetts in 2006 with the Eagles winning, 38-16 (in Chestnut Hill). Maryland’s 42-35 home victory in 2007 over the eighth-ranked Eagles snapped a three-game BC winning streak in the series. Maryland won the last time it visited Chestnut Hill (2010), its first victory in three trips.
• Georgia Tech leads the series with the Terps, 14-6, having won four of the last five meetings. Five of the last seven games have been decided by five points or less.
• Clemson holds a 32-26-2 advantage over Maryland in the series, but the Terps have won six of the last 11.
• Florida State has a 20-2 edge in the all-time series, but both Maryland wins have come at home in the last eight meetings.

• Miami (16-9, 7-5) at Maryland (15-11, 5-7)
  Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2012 | 8 p.m. | Comcast Center
  ACC Network (WNUV 54 in Baltimore) | Terrapin Sports Radio Network

• Maryland plays its return match with Miami in a Tuesday-night test at Comcast Center. The Terrapins and Hurricanes played one of the best games of the season so far in the Atlantic Coast Conference on Feb. 1 when the `Canes prevailed in a 90-86 double-overtime game. The Terrapins are 15-11 after last Saturday’s 71-44 loss at 22nd-ranked Virginia, and come into the game tied for seventh place in the league with a 5-7 conference mark. The Canes are 16-9 overall and in a three-way tie for fourth in the league with NC State and Virginia at 7-5.
• The Terrapins got 33 points from Terrell Stoglin in the double-OT loss at Miami earlier in the season. The talented sophomore had six 3-pointers and went 9-for-9 from the free-throw line. Maryland came back from a 16-point deficit in the final seven minutes of regulation to send the game into overtime.
• Maryland is completing a tight turnaround in its schedule, with three games in six days. The Terrapins played host to Boston College last Thursday, traveled to Charlottesville for a game early Saturday afternoon and complete the whirlwind against Miami on Tuesday at 8 p.m.
• Stoglin continues to lead the Atlantic Coast Conference in scoring, now at 21.4 points per game. Stoglin has 24 straight games with double figures in points, and has 18 games with at least 20 points or more. The Terrapins are 12-6 in games in which he hits the 20-point mark. Against Boston College, Stoglin set the school record for 3-pointers in a season by a sophomore. Now with 72, he has surpassed the 64 of Greivis Vasquez in 2008.
• Nick Faust has been playing particularly well of late, taking over the point guard role after the season-ending knee injury to Pe’Shon Howard. Faust has averaged 14.0 points per game in his last three outings, scoring in double figures in the last three and four of the last five games. He has also stood out at the defensive end, getting 11 steals in the last six games. His five against Boston College marked the first time a Terp player had that many in a game since the ACC Quarterfinals in 2010 when both Greivis Vasquez and Landon Milbourne accomplished that feat.
• Maryland has won the last two straight over Miami in games played in Comcast Center, including an 81-59 victory on 1/26/2010 in the most recent matchup in College Park.
• After road games at Georgia Tech on Saturday and at North Carolina on Feb. 29, the Terrapins will play their final game of the regular season at Comcast Center on Sunday, March 4 on Senior Day against Virginia.
  

  Scouting the Hurricanes

• Miami is 16-9 and 7-5 in the ACC following a 74-56 home win over Wake Forest on Saturday… The Hurricanes are 4-6 on the road this season, but have won three of the last four, beating Georgia Tech, Boston College and Duke while falling to Florida State.
• Junior guard Durand Scott is averaging a team-high 12.9 ppg and is one of four Hurricanes averaging double figures… junior forward Kenny Kadji (12.8), senior guard Malcolm Grant (11.6) and junior center Reggie Johnson (11.1) are the other three… Both Scott and Kadji had 18 points in the win over Wake Forest.
• Miami ranks second in the ACC in 3FG made per game (7.5), with Grant, Trey McKinney Jones and Shane Larkin leading the way… Grant has made 49 of 162 (.302), McKinney Jones 30 of 84 (.357) and Larkin 27 of 76 (.355)… Against Wake Forest the Hurricanes made 12 of 31 3FG attempts (.387).
• With the 6-foot-10, 284-pound Johnson and 6-foot-11, 251-pound Kadji, Miami has an imposing frontcourt… Johnson is averaging a team-high 7.1 rebounds per game, while Kadji has a team-best 40 blocks.
  

  Upcoming

  After road games at Georgia Tech on Saturday and at North Carolina on Feb. 29, the Terrapins will play their final game of the regular season at Comcast Center on Sunday, March 4 on Senior Day against Virginia.

  The Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament will be held March 8 to 11 at Phillips Arena in Atlanta.

Boston College (8-17, 3-8) at Maryland (14-10, 4-6)
Thursday, Feb. 16, 2012 | 9 p.m. | Comcast Center
ACC Network-WNUV 54 in Baltimore | Terrapin Sports Radio Network

Maryland (14-9, 4-5) at #10/9 Duke (20-4, 7-2)
Saturday, Feb. 10, 2012 | 4 p.m. | Durham, N.C. (Cameron Indoor Stadium)
ESPN / ESPN3 | Terrapin Sports Radio Network

Johnny Rhodes Named An ACC Tournament Legend

Former Maryland guard one of 12 players selected to 2012 class

    GREENSBORO, N.C.— Johnny Rhodes, one of the most versatile players in Atlantic Coast Conference history, who helped lead Maryland back to national prominence in the mid-1990’s, has been selected to the 2012 class of ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament Legends.

    The 12-man class was announced Tuesday by Commissioner John Swofford and includes a member of the ACC’s 50^th Anniversary basketball team, a National Player of the Year, three former All-Americas, six former All-ACC selections, ten former NBA Draft selections – including six first-round selections – and eight players who combined for 38 years of NBA experience.

    Rhodes, a native of Washington, D.C., is the ACC’s career steals leader and helped Maryland make three NCAA Tournament appearances in his four-year career. He is the only player in ACC history to score over 1,700 points (1,743) with over 700 rebounds (704), 400 assists (437) and 300 steals (344).

    Joining Rhodes in the class are former Wake Forest All-America Randolph Childress (Washington, D.C.), who led the Deacons to the 1995 ACC Championship, and former North Carolina All-America Kenny Smith (Queens, N.Y.), who led the Tar Heels to four straight NCAA Tournament appearances and was named the National Player of the Year by Basketball Times in 1987.

    Also in the class are Boston College’s John Bagley (Stratford, Conn.), who was named a third-team (NABC) All-America in 1982; Clemson’s Sharone Wright (Macon, Ga.), a powerful post player for the Tigers who earned All-ACC honors in 1993 and 1994; Duke’s Kenny Dennard (King, N.C.), one of the key cogs of the Blue Devils 1978 Final Four team who helped lead Duke to ACC titles in 1978 and 1980; Florida State’s James Collins (Jacksonville, Fla), a high-scoring wingman who was a three-time All-ACC selection in 1995, 1996 and 1997; Georgia Tech’s Malcolm Mackey (Chattanooga, Tenn.), a powerful post player who helped lead Georgia Tech to ACC Championships in 1990 and 1993.

    Completing this year’s ACC Legends Class are Miami’s Ron Godfrey (Coral Springs, Fla.), an Honorable Mention All-America forward for the Hurricanes in the 1960’s who also served as head coach for four seasons; NC State’s Todd Fuller (Charlotte, N.C.), a prodigious presence in the paint for the Wolfpack who earned All-ACC honors in 1994, 1995, and 1996; Virginia’s Lee Raker (Louisville, Ky.), a versatile forward who helped lead the Cavaliers to the 1981 NCAA Final Four; and Virginia Tech’s Dale Solomon (Annapolis, Md.), a high-scoring forward who helped lead the Hokies to two NCAA Tournament appearances and one NIT berth.

   The Legends will be honored at this year’s ACC’s Men’s Basketball Tournament at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Ga., March 8-11. They will be feted at the annual ACC Legends Brunch, which will be held Saturday, March 10, beginning at 10 a.m. at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis Hotel, and, later that day, will be introduced to the Philips Arena crowd at halftime of the first semifinal game. Ticket information for the ACC Legends Brunch is available on the ACC website at theACC.com.

   Rhodes (1992-96), the ACC’s career leader in steals, started four seasons for coach Gary Williams at Maryland, leading the Terrapins back to national prominence. An extremely versatile guard who played point or wing guard, Rhodes is the only player in ACC history to score over 1,700 points (1,743) with over 700 rebounds (704), 400 assists (437) and 300 steals (344). He helped the Terrapins post a 73-49 overall record during his four seasons in College Park, including three straight (1994, 95, 96) appearances in the NCAA Tournament. He was named to the 1993 ACC All-Freshman team, then earned 3^rd-team All-ACC honors as a junior and 2^nd-team All-ACC accolades as a senior in 1996. He still holds the ACC career record for steals per game (2.82), and his 110 steals and 3.7 steals per game in 1996 are still league standards. He totaled 704 rebounds in his career, the third-best mark by an ACC backcourtman, trailing only Georgia Tech’s Bruce Dalrymple (744) and Florida State’s Bob Sura (714). A native of Washington, D.C., Rhodes owns his own construction firm, Rhodes Construction, in the D.C. area, and is working towards starting the Johnny Rhodes Foundation.

   Bagley (1979-82), one of the top playmaking guards in Boston College history, played three seasons for the Eagles for Coach Dr. Tom Davis and led BC to a 64-27 record and one NIT and two NCAA tournament appearances. The first Eagle to earn Big East Player of the Year honors (1980-81), Bagley was an explosive scorer who averaged nearly 18 points per game and led BC in scoring in each of his three seasons at the Heights. A two-time All-Big East selection, he averaged 20.4 points per game in leading the Eagles to the 1980-81 Big East regular-season championship and the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16. The following year, Bagley upped his production to 21.1 points per game and led BC to the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight. He was named to the NCAA all-tournament teams for both the 1981 Mideast Regional and the 1982 Midwest Regional. Bagley left BC after his junior season and was the 12^th overall pick in the first round by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 1982 NBA Draft. He enjoyed an 11-year career in the NBA for the Cavaliers, the New Jersey Nets, the Boston Celtics and the Atlanta Hawks. Inducted into the Boston College Varsity Club Athletic Hall of Fame in 1995, he currently resides in Stratford, Conn., and is working to reintroduce athletics into the middle school system of his hometown, Bridgeport, Conn.

   Wright (1991-94), a dominating 6-11 presence in the low post for the teams of Coach Cliff Ellis in the early 1990’s, still ranks 5^th on the ACC’s career list for blocked shots per game (3.13). An Honorable Mention All-America (AP) in 1994, he was one of 20 nominees for the Naismith Award that year. He led the ACC in blocked shots in 1992 and 1993 and finished 3^rd in 1994. He ranked 6^th on the Clemson career list for rebounds and 4^th in rebounds per game. He still holds the Clemson single-season record for blocked shots (124) and was the only player in the ACC to average in double figures in points and rebounds in both 1994 and 1995. Named a Freshman All-America by Basketball Weekly in 1992, he was named a 3^rd-team All-ACC selection in 1993 and 2^nd-team honors in 1994. As a member of the U.S. team which participated in the 1993 World Games, he shot 73 percent from the field and averaged 10 points a game in leading the U.S. to the gold medal. He was the first Clemson player to declare early for the NBA Draft and was the 6th overall selection on the first round of the 1994 draft by the Philadelphia 76’ers. He played five seasons in the NBA with Philadelphia and Toronto and was named to the 1994-95 NBA All-Rookie team. His NBA career was cut short by a severe auto accident early in his fifth professional season. Wright currently resides in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., where he is involved in various basketball coaching projects.

   Dennard (1978-81), a versatile 6-8 forward who was effective inside or outside for the Duke teams of Bill Foster and Mike Krzyzewski of the late 1970’s and early ‘80s, helped lead Duke to the 1978 NCAA Final Four and two ACC Championships in 1978 and 1980. Dennard helped the Blue Devils compile a 90-37 record in his four seasons in Durham, including three NCAA Tournament appearances and one NIT berth. He was named to the 1978 ACC All-Tournament second team in his freshman season. Dennard played three seasons for Bill Foster (1978-80) and one for Mike Krzyzewski and was named team captain in his senior season. Drafted in the 4^th round of the 1981 NBA Draft by Kansas City, he played three seasons in the NBA for Kansas City (1982-83) and Denver (1984). He finished his career shooting 51.3 percent from the field and is one of seven Duke players who have totaled over 1,000 points (1,057), 650 rebounds (671) and 200 assists (232) in his career. A native of King, N.C., Dennard is the managing partner at Dennard, Rupp, Gray and Lascar, an investor relations firm based in Houston, Texas. He will be a 30-year cancer survivor this coming September and has served on the Coaches vs. Cancer National Council since 1996. He has been married to his high school sweetheart, Nadine, for 27 years and they have a son, Mason (17).

    Collins (1993-97), a high-scoring wing guard for the Florida State teams of Pat Kennedy, was a three-time All-ACC honoree. Collins was named 3^rd-team All-ACC in 1995 and 1996 and garnered 2^nd-team honors as a senior in 1997. That year he led Florida State to a 20-12 record and to the finals of the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) where they lost to Michigan. He completed his career as the third leading scorer in school history with 1,793 points. He also still ranks in the FSU all-time Top 10 for field goals (645), field goal attempts, three-point field goals made (255) and three-point field goals attempted (686) and made 37.1 percent of his shots from three-point range. Collins was drafted as the 36^th overall pick by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2^nd round of the 1997 NBA Draft. He played one season in the NBA with the Los Angeles Clippers (1998) and spent one year (1999) in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) before playing professionally nine seasons in Europe. A native of Jacksonville, Fla., he currently is the head basketball coach at his high school alma mater, Andrew Jackson High School in Jacksonville.

   Mackey (1990-93), Georgia Tech’s all-time leading rebounder who was a low post force for the Jackets both offensively and defensively, helped lead the Tech to a four-year record of 87-43 which included four NCAA Tournament appearances. Mackey completed his career with 1,205 rebounds, a total which ranks 11^th-best in ACC history. He also had 199 career blocked shots, which ranks 26^th on the ACC career list.  Mackey was named 2^nd-team All-ACC in 1993 and 3rd-team All-ACC  in 1992. An Honorable Mention All-America in 1993 by United Press International, he was also a 2nd-team All-District in 1993 by the NABC. Mackey remains Tech’s career leader in rebounds (1,205), games played (130) and games started (127). He was named to the ACC All-Tournament teams in 1990 (3rd team) and 1992 (2nd team). He is the only Tech player to start for two ACC championship teams (1990,1993). The 27^th overall pick in the first-round of the 1993 NBA Draft by the Phoenix Suns, he played one season in the NBA and 11 seasons professionally in the CBA, Europe, China and Puerto Rico. A native of Chattanooga, Tenn., he currently is the Internet Sales Manager at Hennessey GMC Buick and is also serving as a landlord for several properties in McDonough, Ga.

   Godfrey (1958-61), one of the finest forwards to play at Miami, was an honorable mention All-America as a senior in 1961. He finished his career ranked in the Top Ten in seven career categories in the Miami record book including 7^th in points (1,384), 7^th in field goals made (518), 6^th in free throws made (384) and 7^th in rebounds (767). Godfrey’s totals of 159 free throws made and 207 free throws attempted in 1960 still rank 5^th and 6^th in the Hurricane career lists. His total of 22 made free throws against Oklahoma City in 1960 is still tied with Rick Barry for the most made in a game by a Miami player. For his career, he averaged 17.5 points a game. Playing alongside former Miami All-America Dick Hickox, Godfrey helped lead the Hurricanes to their first-ever NCAA tournament bid in 1960 as the Canes finished with a sparkling 23-4 record. In his senior year, Godfrey led Miami to a 20-7 mark and a berth in the National Invitation Tournament. In his three varsity seasons, Godfrey helped the Hurricanes to a 61-18 record. As a coach, he guided Miami for four seasons, leading the Hurricanes to championships in the 1967 Hurricane Classic and the 1968 Marshall Tournament and was inducted into the Miami Sports Hall of Fame in 1988. A native of Martins Ferry, Ohio, he now resides in Coral Springs, Fla.

   Smith (1983-87), one of the top point guards in North Carolina basketball history, Smith ended his career second in ACC history only to Wake Forest’s Muggsy Bogues in career assists with 768, averaging 6.1 per for each of his 127 career games. His assist total still ranks ninth on the ACC’s career list.  Coached by the legendary Dean Smith, he helped lead North Carolina to a 115-19 record during his four varsity seasons. Smith also helped North Carolina to four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, reaching the Elite Eight in both 1985 and 1987. He was named the National Player of the Year by Basketball Times in 1987 and also earned consensus first-team All-America honors that year. He was a 2^nd-team All-ACC honoree in 1985 and 1986 and earned first-team honors as a senior in 1987. The 6^th pick in the first round of the 1987 NBA Draft by the Sacramento Kings, he played 11 seasons in the NBA for Sacramento, Atlanta, Houston, Detroit, Orlando and Denver. A member of the 1988 NBA All-Rookie team while with Sacramento, he was a part of two NBA Championship squads (1994, 1995) while with the Houston Rockets. He scored 9,397 points (12.9 avg.), grabbed 1,424 rebounds (2.0 avg.) and passed out 4,073 assists (5.5 avg.) during his NBA career. In 1998, he joined Turner Sports and has since served as a basketball TV analyst for Turner Sports, NBA TV and CBS-TV for the NBA and for the NCAA Basketball Tournament. A native of Queens, N.Y. who attended Archbishop Molloy High School, he now resides in Atlanta, Ga.

   Fuller (1992-96), a strong low-post presence for the NC State teams of coach Les Robinson in the mid-1990s, led the ACC in scoring as a senior in 1996, averaging 20.9 points per game. The 6-11 center finished 4^th in the ACC in rebounding in 1995 and 5^th in 1996. He earned first-team All-ACC honors in as a senior in 1996 and was a third team choice as a sophomore (1994) and a second-team selection as a junior (1995). Also an excellent student, he graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science degree from NC State in 1996 in Applied Mathematics. He was named to the All-ACC Academic team in each of his four seasons and he was a two-time first-team Academic All-America, earning that honor in 1995 and 1996. He declined to accept the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship in order to play professional basketball. He was the 11^th overall pick in the first round of the 1996 NBA Draft by the Golden State Warriors and went on to play five seasons in the NBA with Golden State, Utah, Charlotte and Miami. He also played professionally six seasons in Spain, Poland, Greece and Australia. He sponsors an annual mathematics competition for Raleigh, N.C., area high school students through NC State, called the “Todd Fuller Math Competition.” He also has a scholarship fund arranged through the NC State Physical and Mathematical Sciences college. In 2007, the Wolfpack honored him by hanging his jersey, number 52, from the roof of the RBC Center.

   Raker (1977-81) combined with high school teammate Jeff Lamp and Virginia All-America Ralph Sampson to lead Virginia to two of the most successful seasons in school history in 1980 and 1981 for coach Terry Holland. An excellent shooter, defender and passer, Raker helped lead the Cavaliers to a 24-10 record which included the championship of the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) in 1980. UVa followed that up with a 29-4 record in 1981, including a 13-1 mark in the ACC and first place during the regular season. UVa advanced to the NCAA Final Four, garnering 3^rd-place national honors with a win over LSU in the consolation game. At one point, Raker helped the Cavaliers win eight consecutive post-season games, still a school record. Virginia finished the 1981 campaign ranked 5^th in the final AP poll and 3^rd in UPI. During his four collegiate seasons,  Raker helped lead Virginia to a 92-32 overall record, averaging in double figures in scoring each year, and shooting 50.3 percent from the field for his collegiate career. He completed his career with 1,423 points, which still ranks 20th on Virginia’s career scoring list. He also led the 1979 squad in field goal percentage and was named a 2^nd-team All-ACC selection that year. An excellent student, Raker was twice named to the All-ACC Academic Basketball squad (1980, 1981) and earned first-team Academic All-America honors in 1981. He was selected in the 4^th round of the 1981 NBA Draft by San Diego. A native of Louisville, Ky., he is now the Head of Investor Relations with Camber Capital Management LLC and lives in the Boston, Mass. area.

   Solomon (1978-82), one of the best basketball players in Virginia Tech history, was a 6-9 center-forward who combined power with a soft shooting touch. He helped the Tech teams of Charlie Moir to a four-year record of 78-41 which included two NCAA Tournament appearances and one NIT berth. Solomon led Tech in scoring in each of his four  seasons and ended his career with 2,136 points which still ranks 4^th on the Hokies’ career scoring list. Solomon’s career scoring average (18.4) is Tech’s 9th best. His career field goal percentage of .567 is the second best in Tech history and his 856 career rebounds rank 7th. He was named to the first-team All-Metro Conference in each of his four seasons. Solomon was named the Metro Conference Tournament MVP and Freshman of the Year in 1979, leading the Hokies to the Metro Conference championship. Solomon was selected in the 3^rd round of the 1982 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers but did not play in the NBA. He did play professionally in Italy for 12 seasons. A native of Annapolis, Md., Solomon is currently living in his hometown.

   Childress (1991-95) turned in one of the spectacular performances in the history of the ACC Tournament in his senior season, as the sharpshooting guard led Wake Forest to the 1995 ACC Championship by averaging 35.7 points and 7 assists per game in the Tournament’s three contests. That year, Childress, playing for coach Dave Odom, saved his best for last, scoring 37 points and passing out 7 assists. In that title game, he connected on the game-winning jump shot with only four seconds remaining in overtime as Wake defeated North Carolina, 82-80. For his efforts, he was named the winner of the Everett Case Award as the 1995 Tournament’s MVP. He also was named the winner of the McKevlin Award as the ACC’s Overall Athlete of the Year for the 1994-95 school year. A second-team All-America selection in 1995, he was named first-team All-ACC in 1994 and 1995 and 2^nd-team All-ACC in 1993. He scored 2,208 points during his career, which still ranks 18^th on the ACC ‘s career scoring list, and he made 329 three-point field goals, the 5^th-highest total in ACC history. He helped lead the Demon Deacons to a four-year record of 85-39 which included four appearances in the NCAA Tournament and two trips to the NCAA Sweet 16. He was twice named to the ACC All-Tournament team in 1994 and 1995. Childress ranked 3^rd in scoring in the ACC in 1993 and 1994 and finished 2^nd in 1994. Selected as the 19^th overall choice of the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the 1995 NBA Draft, he played two seasons in the NBA with Detroit and Portland. He then played 14 professional seasons in Turkey, France, Italy and Australia. In 2002, he was named to the ACC’s 50^th Anniversary Basketball Team as one of its Top 50 basketball players. A native of Washington, D.C., he recently returned to Winston-Salem to serve as an Assistant to the Athletic Director of Wake Forest.

LEGENDS BRUNCH

   The Legends will be honored at this year’s ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament in Atlanta at the annual ACC Basketball Legends Brunch, which will be held on Saturday, March 10 beginning at 10 a.m. at the Marriott Marquis Hotel. Hosted by television personalities Tim Brant and Mike Hogewood, tickets for the ACC Men’s Basketball Legends Brunch are priced at $35 each and tables of ten are available for $350 each. Information on purchasing tickets may be obtained at the official ACC website—www.theACC.com/ACCtournament.

   2012 ACC BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT LEGENDS ROSTER

   Name School Years Position Hometown (Current Hometown)

   John Bagley   Boston College 1979-82 Guard Bridgeport, Conn. (Stratford, Conn.)

   Sharone Wright Clemson 1991-94 Center Macon, Ga.  (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.)

   Kenny Dennard Duke 1977-81 Forward King, N.C. (Houston, Texas)

   James Collins Florida State 1993-97 Guard Jacksonville, Fla.. (same) 

   Malcolm Mackey Georgia Tech 1989-93 Forward/Ctr. Chattanooga, Tenn. (McDonough, Ga.)

   Johnny Rhodes Maryland 1992-96 Guard Washington, D.C. (same )

   Ron Godfrey Miami 1958-61 Guard Martins Ferry, Ohio (Coral Springs, Fla.)

   Kenny Smith North Carolina 1983-87 Guard Queens, N.Y. (Atlanta, Ga.)

   Todd Fuller NC State 1992-96 Center Charlotte, N.C.. (same)

   Lee Raker Virginia 1977-81 Forward Louisville, Ky. (Boston, Mass.)

   Dale Solomon Virginia Tech 1978-82 Forward Annapolis, Md. (same)

   Randolph Childress Wake Forest 1991-95 Guard Washington, D.C. (Winston-Salem, N.C.)

ATLANTA – Sophomore Alyssa Thomas of the eighth-ranked Maryland women’s basketball ball team was added to the 2011-12 State Farm Wade Watch List, the State Farm Wade Trophy Committee announced Tuesday.

The Harrisburg, Pa. native is one of eight players added to the 25-member Preseason Watch List. She is one of four Atlantic Coast Conference players named to the list, joining Florida State’s Cierra Bravard and Miami’s Shenise Johnson and Riquna Williams. Thomas is also one of just six underclassmen to earn a spot.

Thomas is the ACC’s leading scorer with her 17.3 points per game and 19.1 points per contest in league games. The forward leads the ACC with her free throw percentage of .872, is No. 9 in the league in rebounds (7.5), and No. 5 in assist/turnover ratio (1.6).

The Wade Trophy, named after the late, legendary three-time national champion Delta State University head coach Lily Margaret Wade, debuted in 1978 as the first-ever women’s national player of the year award in college basketball. The Wade Trophy Coalition was established in June 2000 when the WBCA partnered with The National Association of Girls and Women in Sport (NAGWS). For the past 10 years the two have worked together to present The State Farm Wade Trophy player of the year award. A committee composed of coaches, administrators and media from across the U.S. selects the winner. For the full Wade Watch List, log on to WBCA.org.

Next, Maryland (20-3, 7-3 ACC) will head south once more this week with a game at Clemson (6-15, 2-8) Thursday at 7 p.m. The Terps-Tigers game can be seen live online for a fee at TigerCast.com.

After Thursday’s game, the Terrapins will return home for a 2:30 p.m. game Sunday vs. No. 6 Miami (20-3, 9-1). It will be the Terps’ annual Play4Kay game to support breast cancer awareness. Breast cancer survivors are invited to come for free and their friends and family can purchase discounted tickets for $1 by emailing Terpsports@umd.edu.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — While I don’t think University of Maryland guard Terrell Stoglin has ever uttered the exact words before, they sounded particularly familiar.

“We came short again from getting that signature win.”

If Stoglin has never uttered some a combination of words before, I know for sure that I have. I’d be willing to guess that Terrapins fans throughout the Baltimore and Washington areas and across the country have said either the exact combination of words or at least something remarkably similar.

Maryland was predictably “almost there” in their 83-74 loss to the University of North Carolina Saturday at Comcast Center. The Terps (13-9, 3-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) had a second half lead and never appeared to be out of it, but couldn’t muster up enough to knock off the #5 Tar Heels (20-3, 7-1 ACC) and give head coach Mark Turgeon his first marquee victory since replacing the legendary Gary Williams.

One of the culprits this time was offensive rebounds, as 19 second chances (on 39 missed field goals) became 18 second chance points for UNC. On the other side, Maryland had just 13 second chance opportunities (on 36 missed field goals) and converted those into just 12 second chance points.

“I know I’m going to watch the tape and probably be disappointed in our effort on the glass, (which) is something I’m on these guys about” Turgeon said after the loss. “I’ve never had more trouble getting a team to be more physical on box outs. We’ve worked on it, we talk about it, we work on it every day.”

Another culprit was Maryland’s inability to turn turnovers into points, as 14 Carolina turnovers resulted in just 11 Maryland points while 13 Maryland turnovers lead to 18 Carolina points.

As I feel like I’ve said before, they were very close to beating a quality opponent. They just weren’t quite good enough. Even Turgeon suggested in his body language (and a few uncharacteristic short answers) that this close call was a bit more frustrating than some of the other near-misses they’ve had against good teams this season.

It feels like a broken record. Much like in losses to Duke, Florida State, Tempe and Illinois earlier in the season; the Terrapins were in no ways blown off the floor by a superior opponent. They played at times exactly the way they needed to play in order to win games, but they just managed to let it slip away during a stretch where they got away from what makes them good.

“(We) had a stretch in the second half where we couldn’t get into anything” Turgeon said. “(Guard) Pe’Shon (Howard) was on the bench. (We) just didn’t look like we could get into anything, and when (North Carolina C/F Tyler) Zeller was out I thought we could’ve made a run.”

This is exactly the scenario that allowed what was once a 48-39 Maryland lead in the second to become a 50-50 tie in less than five minutes of game play.

Maryland is a good team. Well, they’re at least an improving team. They’re certainly better than the team that was blown out by both Alabama and Iona in the 5-hour Energy Puerto Rico Tip-Off in November. They’re just not going to be good enough to make any sort of imprint before the end of the season.

They’re not going to get into the NCAA Tournament, but we already knew that. They’re probably not going to make much of a charge in the ACC Tournament. They’re likely to find themselves on the outside looking in at even the NIT. They still have four games left against ranked teams (home and home against Virginia, games at Duke and North Carolina); but it is still hard to imagine this team improving enough to do more than perhaps steal one of two against the Cavaliers, and that’s honestly a best case scenario.

It will be tough for this team to show marked progress before the end of Turgeon’s first season, but it doesn’t make Maryland basketball a hopeless cause.

In fact, Turgeon probably said it best again after the loss.

“Obviously we’d like to win a couple more. We went to the wire the other night (in a 2OT loss to Miami), great comeback, great effort, really proud of our guys but we lost. Today we competed against the #5/#6 team in the country, great home crowd, lot of fun. I don’t look at 3-5. I really don’t. I’m going to look at the film and see how I can make them better.”

He then wrapped with this.

“You know what I need to do tonight to make myself feel better is pop in the Radford tape (the last game the team played before C Alex Len returned from suspension) and then pop in this tape to see how much better we’ve gotten in a little over a month. The kids are growing up, our preparation is better. We’re just not there yet.”

He’s right.

-G

Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. (theACC.com) - Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner John Swofford announced today the future scheduling formats as approved by the ACC’s Faculty Athletic Representatives and Athletics Directors.

The announcement was made following the annual ACC Winter Meetings and will go in effect once Pittsburgh and Syracuse become playing members in the conference.

“We have been engaged in discussions on the various options for integrating Pitt and Syracuse since early fall,” said ACC Commissioner John Swofford. “It’s a tremendous tribute to the leadership at our schools that we will be able to seamlessly add Pitt and Syracuse at the appropriate time when they become full playing members.”

A breakdown of the future scheduling models include:

Football:
The Atlantic and Coastal divisions will remain the same with Syracuse joining the Atlantic and Pitt joining the Coastal. The current primary crossover partners will remain consistent with Syracuse and Pitt becoming primary crossover partners with each other.

When Pitt and Syracuse join the ACC, the league will play a nine-game conference schedule. The format will consist of each team playing all six in its division each year, plus its primary crossover partner each year and two rotating opponents from the opposite division. This six-year cycle allows each team to play each divisional opponent and its primary crossover partner six times (three home and three away) while also playing each rotating crossover opponent two times (one home and one away).

Men’s and Women’s Basketball:
As previously announced, the ACC will play an 18-game conference schedule beginning in 2012-13.

When Pitt and Syracuse join, each school will have one primary partner (Boston College and Syracuse; Clemson and Georgia Tech; Duke and North Carolina; Florida State and Miami; Maryland and Pitt; NC State and Wake Forest; Virginia and Virginia Tech).

The scheduling model will be based on a three-year cycle during which teams will play every league opponent at least once with the primary partners playing home and away annually while the other 12 rotate in groups of four: one year both home and away; one year at home only; and one year away only. Over the course of the three-year cycle primary partners play a total of six times and all other conference opponents play four times.

The format allows each program to see opponents with more regularity and creates an increase in competitive balance throughout the teams. It was determined that all 14 league members will continue to compete in the ACC Men’s and Women’s Tournaments and a decision on the Tournament formats will be announced at a later date.

Olympic Sports:
All team sports will continue to play each conference team at least once during the regular season. Baseball is the only exception as they currently don’t play all conference opponents.

The league will continue to sponsor an ACC Championship event in all sports. The only exception will be volleyball, which will continue to recognize its champion from regular-season play.

The conference will sponsor an ACC Championship in the sport of gymnastics. There are currently three institutions that sponsor gymnastics (Maryland, North Carolina and NC State) and with the addition of Pitt, the ACC will have four programs, the necessary number in the league’s bylaws to host a conference championship. The ACC previously sponsored a conference championship in gymnastics in 1984.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — University of Maryland men’s basketball coach Mark Turgeon believed that despite entering Saturday’s game against Virginia Tech at the Comcast Center on a three game losing streak his team had been playing much better.

In looking for a message his team could use to turn solid play into actual victories, he channeled a coaching icon.

“My line today (and I’ll give my wife and mother in law credit-my mother in law went to Penn State), Joe Paterno said (in an article) ‘hustle and good things happen’” Turgeon said after Saturday’s game. “So my thought for the day yesterday was ‘have fun, hustle and good things will happen. That was kind of our approach for the last two days. ‘Try to have fun, hustle, and good things will happen’ and it did for us.”

The Terrapins’ 73-69 win over Virginia Tech will never be viewed as iconic itself, but the message was clearly effective. The Terps (13-7, 3-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) hustled out to a 32-19 halftime lead over the Hokies (12-9, 1-5 ACC), then had fun as they held on for the victory-a very good thing after setbacks at Florida State and Temple then at home Wednesday night to Duke.

Turgeon said the aftermath of the lost in Tallahassee sparked a turnaround in his team which finally delivered a victorious result.

“I started getting after them after we lost to Florida State because I didn’t think we played well down there, especially in the second half-we were doing the same things” Turgeon said after the win. “They went in the shower after that game just laughing and joking-and it’s not that way. I say I don’t care about winning and losing, but (Maryland players) know better than that.”

“We talked about giving more and preparing harder, doing what you’re doing and being a better teammate” Turgeon added.

After tough losses to the Owls and Blue Devils, the Terrapins’ improved play finally got them into the win column Saturday. The win came thanks largely to sophomore guard Terrell Stoglin, who again lead the team in scoring with 28 points. Most importantly, Stoglin drilled four 2nd half three-pointers as VT attempted to seize momentum.

“He’s got a will to win” Turgeon said. “He hit those back-to-back three’s for us and those were huge.”

Even bigger was a step-back three Stoglin hit with 2:45 left in the game after the Hokies’ had trimmed Maryland’s lead all the way down to five points.

“I just felt they had the momentum” Stoglin said. “I just wanted to make a bucket. I initially wanted to go to the basket but I saw (the defender) was off me, so I just went to pull up. I was really confident in that shot. You get that feeling. They had the momentum, I just wanted to stop it. That’s all it was. I just concentrated on my shot. I knew it was a big shot for my team, I wanted to take it.”

Turgeon’s Paterno-esque message was delivered after what he described as a week where his team (between practice, meetings and games) gave him four good days out of five. Stoglin said the message included a defensive stress.

“He told us after the Duke game he felt our effort was there but it could have been more. He just told us that he wanted our defense to be there tonight and it was.”

“It has been pretty intense and I think that you can see that” Turgeon concurred. “I think you see a team that really cares about each other. Our preparation for the last three games has been off the charts, and this one has by far been the best. It showed by the way we defended and our preparation. I don’t want to brag about them too much because we’ve had three games in one week and we lost two of them, (but) it’s a lot more fun to be around and it’s a lot more fun to coach.”

Beating Virginia Tech by no means puts Maryland back on track to reach the NCAA Tournament, but it is quite possibly the positive step needed to get a team back on track during an unforgiving conference schedule.

Perhaps the message should stay the same. If Maryland continues to have fun and hustle, you’d assume more good things would happen.

-G

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — It was a fitting night for the Comcast Center floor to be dedicated as Gary Williams Court Wednesday.

Fitting because the atmosphere on campus at the University of Maryland was reminiscent to many nights during the 22 years Williams patrolled the sidelines for the Terrapins before retiring. The stands at the school’s nearly ten year old arena were absolutely rocking with Maryland students and no seats to be had. Students began chanting before the game and remained a factor almost until the game was over.

Unfortunately for the team inherited by Mark Turgeon, the performance on the newly dedicated floor was also fitting for a team that hasn’t really been good enough since Williams left.

The Terps hung in against the eighth ranked Duke University Blue Devils for much of the game, even leading 47-46 midway through the second half. But the Devils (17-3, 5-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) would double up the Terps (12-7, 2-3 ACC) the rest of the way en route to a 74-61 victory. Sophomore guard Terrell Stoglin would again lead the Terps in scoring (16 points), but the Terps would again fail to offer significant help on the offensive end (guard Pe’Shon Howard was next with just ten points). Struggles from beyond the arc (4-13) and the free throw line (11-21) continued to doom a team that lacks enough ability elsewhere to overcome such struggles.

A third straight overall loss for the Terps, it was eerily similar to the defeats suffered at both Florida State University at Temple University last week. They played well enough for a good stretch of the game but their problems ultimately caught up to them against an opponent of either similar or superior ability. They’re pretty good…just not quite good enough.

Mired in a funk after back to back conference wins, Turgeon attempted to put a positive spin on the loss postgame.

“I thought our team battled well and think we had a game plan and we stuck to it and it kept us around” Turgeon said. “We’re getting better. If you could have been in Puerto Rico (for the 5-Hour Energy Puerto Rico Tip-Off), you would have never thought that we could play like we’re playing right now. So, we’re getting there.”

It sounds a lot like coach speak, but it’s actually quite honest. Of course, that’s really the biggest problem facing this Maryland team as constructed.

The difficulty with judging Turgeon’s first season in College Park is that struggles were to be expected. Even after getting Howard back from a foot injury that cost him the first nine games of the season and adding freshman C Alex Len after serving a ten game suspension for eligibility issues, this Maryland team remains uncomfortably thin. Their big bodies aren’t big enough to neutralize talented frontcourts (23 points and 12 rebounds for Mason Plumlee Wednesday night a glaring example) and none of their players in the backcourt have a dangerous enough inside-outside game to truly open things up for anyone else.

They’re trying to win without really having the horses to win. Perhaps that’s where Turgeon deserves the most credit.

The new coach has done everything he can to get players to stick to a game plan, improve defensively and get after the basketball. In losses to Alabama and Iona in San Juan, Maryland did very little of what they needed to do in order to win and were on the wrong end of blowouts.

Over the course of the last nine days, the Terrapins have shown in stretches that they can do all of the little things they need to do to win. But in the stretches where those good habits have disappeared, better teams have been able to walk away with victories in three games.

Turgeon attempted to sum it up after the loss.

“There are still four-minute stretches where we aren’t making a field goal, and that is not going to beat good teams. That happens, when we’re good offensively, we’re good. But we have stretches where we don’t make free throws too. It wears you out and you can’t keep up. In the end, our defense wasn’t quite good enough and rebounding wasn’t quite good enough, neither was our free throw shooting. But our effort was tremendous and I’m really proud of the guys.”

This is the issue. Maryland isn’t a “bad” team. They’re just a team that isn’t quite good enough to be able to win games against good teams. Five such games (two against North Carolina, two against Virginia and the trip to Cameron Indoor Stadium) remain on the schedule, and the other six conference games aren’t cupcakes.

They ARE better. It’s just that there’s not enough time left in this season for that progress to truly equal results. Maryland fans hope to have something to hang their hat on about this team this season, but it’s not likely to come.

Turgeon was going to need time to fully show progress and he still will. A stunning upset of Duke might have been enough to garner favor for until the 2012-2013 season tipped off. Similarly a stunning upset of UNC would do the same.

Unfortunately for Maryland fans, those achievements aren’t likely to be realized. It doesn’t mean Turgeon hasn’t done a nice job in his first season.

They’re better. They’re just not quite good enough.

-G