BALTIMORE, Maryland December 2, 2015 - Tuesday night's game against No. 2 Maryland was the first of the season for North Carolina Guard Marcus Paige.
Just Maryland's Luck.
Paige was electric, hitting 4 of 5 three-point shots and scoring 20 points overall in ninth ranked North Carolina's beautiful win over a Maryland team that will improve decisively as the season progresses. Of course, this is just a pundit's prediction about Maryland. But after last night, it's hard not to be excited about Maryland's upside as well as the Tar Heel's. I predict the Terps will improve a lot during this season. There is a lot of evidence that says I'm correct. Melo Trimble and Rasheed Sulaimon play like an NBA back court, a good NBA back court. Sadly, that is where both will be next season. It's Diamond Stone - Maryland's Freshman Center - who will begin to polish up.
But first, the subject of Paige. Credible and Incisive has stated that Maryland's backcourt of Trimble and Sulaimon is the best in the college game. We stand by that statement. But the Tar Heels tandem of Paige and Joel Berry, II is only an eyelash behind them. Last night, there was an extended streak when it seemed like none of Paige's shots were even touching the rim of the basket as they splashed through the nets. It also seemed like Paige had an answer everytime Maryland went on a run. His most decisive shot came with 13:32 left in the game and Maryland leading by a point. Maryland had trailed by as many as 13 in the first half and for a time seemed to be on the verge of being overwhelmed by Carolina's experienced and strong front line and a capacity crowd all decked in Carolina blue.
But as has been the case so far this season, Maryland has to be put on its heels before it starts to play. When Maryland started to play, it was Carolina that appeared to be back on its heels gasping for air. Melo Trimble played his best game so far this season, pouring in 21 points and dishing out 12 assists, many of them of the 'WOW' variety. So, too, was Sulaimon in top form. Terp coach Mark Turgeon said his two magnificent guards "were warriors out there." It was Trimble's four-point play with 13:40 to play that gave Maryland its first lead. He worked off of a high screen and popped in a long three at the same time Carolina's Nate Britt whacked him on the shooting hand. When he converted that free throw, the Terps led, 59-58. Only eight seconds later, Paige answered with a long three. Here was a young man who was playing for the first time since breaking a bone in his non-shooting hand. All he did was take five long three point shots and make four of them. Tar Heel Coach Roy Williams had no right to expect that.
Carolina's starting front line, consisting of Kennedy Meeks, Brice Johnson and Justin Jackson combined for 37 points and 16 rebounds. Last night, they outplayed Maryland's front line, but that advantage will begin to dwindle, and it will happen sooner rather than later. You can almost see Diamond Stone getting better with each game. In the case of the 6', 11" Stone, it is doubtful that he ever played a full game against three inside players the likes of Meeks, Johnson and Jackson. But Stone wasn't a lost soul, either, and he looks like he has more physical abilities than any of Carolina's front court men.. He contributed nine points and 5 rebounds. Maryland also received decent performances from Robert Carter and Michael Cekovsky. Carter had 11 points and five rebounds, even though he was limited to 24 minutes by foul difficulties. Cekovsky - Maryland's 7', 1" center from Kosice, Slovakia, needs minutes on the courts as desperately as Stone - played only 11 minutes but more than held his own when spelling Stone and Carter.
Television analysts last night said Carolina's defense was "disruptive" and that was the difference in the game. Whatever Carolina and Maryland did defensively throughout, it didn't ruin the offense of either side. It will dawn on both teams sometime around February 1 that if they expect to make a serious run in the NCAA Tournament, they will have to ramp their defenses way up. Carolina will also have to work on its end of game free throws. I have always believed that free throw shooting is a direct reflection of the emphasis a coach puts on it. Name a Duke team under Mike Krzyzewski that didn't make its free throws at the end of the game. Last night, Carolina literally opened the door to a Maryland rally by missing foul shots, and it wasn't the front line that was missing, it was Paige and Berry.
Turgeon has to chat with a couple of the lads who didn't play well last night. He will worry about Jake Layman, who has had a penchant for disappearing in big games during his days at Maryland, especially away from College Park. Layman finally came alive late in the second half, not in the scoring column, but undernearth the basket. And Jared Nickens, who played well in big games last season, seemed out of sorts in the second half when Maryland looked to him to relieve the perimeter pressure Carolina was putting on Trimble and Sulaimon. Nickens is one of the most automatic three-point shooters you will ever see. He was one of the few Terrapins who played well against West Virginia in the game that sent Maryland packing from last season's NCAA tournament. Turgeon uses Nickens a lot - 23 minutes off the bench last night - and Maryland needs him a lot.
The Terps return to action Friday night in College Park against St. Francis of Pennsylvania. Tuesday, the take on Connecticut in New York.
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