Terrapins start slowly in win over Seahawks At Comcast Center on Sunday night, it only looked as if Mark Turgeon had ripped his suit jacket straight up the back. Actually, it was a microphone with an antenna, chronicling his every utterance in his Maryland debut.
It’s fair to say that much of his dialogue will have to be edited, at least that from the first half. After struggling early, the Terrapins got their running game in gear and subdued UNC Wilmington 71-62.
Recommended Stories
It was a tough matchup for the Terps, who had seven scholarship players available, while the Seahawks rotated 12. But Maryland improved as the game progressed. With junior James Padgett (12 points, seven rebounds) scoring back-to-back baskets to start the second half and sophomore guard Terrell Stoglin (22 points) following with a fast-break layup, the Terps pushed their lead to double digits.
“I was really proud of my group tonight,” Turgeon said. “I didn’t think we were going to lose tonight ever.”
UNCW, also playing its opener, stayed in it thanks to the shooting of freshman guard Adam Smith (23 points) who hit five 3-pointers in his college debut. Smith was poised to cut the Maryland lead to four points with 80 seconds left as he went in for a layup. But senior guard Sean Mosley (eight points) swatted the ball into the crowd, and the Seahawks followed with a turnover. When freshman Nick Faust (seven points, six rebounds) hit a pair of free throws with 61 seconds left, Maryland’s lead was safe at 67-59.
It was no surprise that Turgeon entered to little fanfare. But it was a little surprising that Stoglin, the Terps’ top returning scorer, was on the bench to start the game. He was in soon enough, however, to score the Terps’ second field goal less than four minutes into the game.
Turgeon didn’t reveal why he benched Stoglin but minimized the action.
“Guys gotta do things a certain way. It’s nothing big,” Turgeon said. “Terrell played his tail off tonight.”
After a ragged start, the Maryland offense clicked in the last eight minutes of the first half, converting on nine of 10 possessions to take the lead for good. The Terps worked hard for their points in the surge, all of which came on layups or from the free throw line. Padgett and freshman Ashton Pankey (13 points, eight rebounds) pounded for a pair of buckets each as the Terps took a 25-18 lead.
The play of both Terps big men was a major positive. Padgett exceeded his career high and combined with Pankey to hit 11 of 17 shots from the floor and lead Maryland to a 34-28 edge on the boards.
The night’s highlight came on a fast break when sophomore guard Mychal Parker (five points) passed to Mosley, who lobbed it back to Parker for an emphatic two-handed slam.
