Nothing new on Len, Howard injury, according to Turgeon
Because of an injury to starting point guard Pe’Shon Howard (broken foot), Maryland will be forced to use 6-6 freshman Nick Faust as the backup at the point, according to new coach Mark Turgeon.
“He’s a really good three man,” Turgeon said. “But he’s gonna have to play point and he’s not comfortable there. [It] puts a lot of pressure on him, shortens our rotation.”
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Maryland’s depth will be tested when it plays three games in four days in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off, Nov. 17-20. The Terps will open with Alabama. A second-round match-up with Witchita State is possible. Turgeon coached the Shockers from 2000-2007.
“We couldn’t afford an injury to one of our two point guards and it’s happened, so we just gotta adjust,” Turgeon said. “It’s a big ripple effect. It’s no little thing. Our program’s not in a position where we just plug somebody in unfortunately. But we will be next year.”
The first walk-on guard off the bench could be Jonathan Thomas, a 6-2 junior, who played at Towson Catholic and finished his high school career at Tuscarora, where he led the MVAL in three-pointers.
Arnold Richmond (Crossland), a 5-11 freshman, is another possibility. Richmond averaged 18 points in his last two seasons and was named All-Prince George’s County first team as a senior.
“We’re gonna have to play some walk-ons,” Turgeon said. “Since Pe’Shon’s gone down we’ve had some scrimmages and haven’t had a lot of practice time to adjust to him being gone and it showed in one of our scrimmages [GW] this weekend. We’ve got to see which of our walk-on players is most ready to help us.”
- Turgeon said there is nothing new on the status of 7-1 freshman Alex Len, who remains in limbo as the NCAA determines his eligibility.
- There also is nothing new on the injury status of Howard, who had an MRI on Saturday to determine if surgery is necessary.
- Turgeon said redshirt freshman Ashton Pankey is “coming the quickest” of his three scholarship big men. “He can defend and rebound for us, better than the other two,” Turgeon said. “James [Padgett] has shown an ability to score. Him and Berend [Weijs] need to know they’re going to play, get relaxed, and do what they do in practice. They’re all getting better.”
