Can Maryland erase bad memories of Duke?
Beat downs don’t come any more unsightly than Duke’s 85-44 dismantling of Maryland last year. It was the largest victory margin for the Blue Devils in the history of the series and had Terrapins fans questioning their players, coach and own devotion to a team seven years removed from an NCAA title.
Recommended Stories
But less than 13 months later, the Terps’ fortunes have done a 180. They are on track for their second straight NCAA berth. And Saturday, when Maryland (16-6, 6-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) returns to Cameron Indoor Stadium for the first time since its embarrassing defeat, it has a chance to supplant Duke (20-4, 8-2) at the top of the ACC standings.
What a difference a year makes.
Duke has won the last five meetings, but Maryland arrives in Durham, N.C., with no shortage of confidence. The Terps are coming off an uplifting 92-71 victory over North Carolina and have had a week to rest after Wednesday’s game against Virginia was postponed by a snowstorm. It gave Maryland a chance to watch Duke beat North Carolina 64-54 in Chapel Hill.
On a night when Duke shot 31.9 percent from the floor, the Blue Devils survived by playing defense, grabbing 19 offensive rebounds and getting clutch play from guard Jon Scheyer (24 points) and forward Kyle Singler (19 points).
Senior forward Lance Thomas was injured, however, and likely will miss Saturday’s game. The 6-foot-8 Thomas suffered a bone bruise on his knee when he collided with North Carolina point guard Larry Drew II.
“He’s been our emotional leader and best defender inside,” said Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, who will give more minutes to 6-10 freshman forward Mason Plumlee. Plumlee emerged off the bench against North Carolina, providing seven points and nine rebounds.
Maryland’s emotional leader, Greivis Vasquez, will make his final trip to Cameron, where he has had a colorful history — including a fateful statement before last year’s game there.
Since coming within a rebound of a triple-double in leading the Terps to a stunning upset of the Blue Devils in Durham in his freshman year, Vasquez — a native of Caracas, Venezuela — has been a target of Duke fans. The Cameron Crazies have chanted at him in Spanish and called him the son of Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez.
Before last year’s game at Duke, Vasquez boasted of Cameron: “That’s my house. I love going there. It’s going to be fun.”
Duke had the last laugh that day in the aforementioned defeat, leading 60-20 early in the second half before Krzyzewski had the Blue Devils back off.
Bookending his career with wins at Duke would be satisfying for Vasquez, the Terps’ top scorer (18.1 points a game) and playmaker (6.3 assists).
“Duke is a great environment,” Vasquez said. “Their fans are so good. They’re into the game. They make the game so much better. It’s just good to play in that environment.”
