Georgia Tech will be a formidable foe in the ACC quarterfinals
Maryland’s height-challenged lineup suits coach Gary Williams’ preferred style of play — scrambling pressure defense and up-tempo flex offense, which demands cuts and screens.
But there is a downside. The Terps can struggle inside, especially against teams with big, mobile frontcourt players.
That will be the challenge for No. 2 Maryland (23-7) on Friday at Greensboro Coliseum when it opens in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament quarterfinals against No. 7 Georgia Tech (20-11), a winner Thursday night over North Carolina, 62-58.
In 6-foot-9 junior Gani Lawal, who averages 13.6 points and 8.8 rebounds per game, and 6-10 freshman Derrick Favors (11.9 ppg, 8.4 rpg), the Yellow Jackets have two of the top three rebounders in the ACC. When Tech took Maryland to the wire on Feb. 20, losing 76-74 on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Cliff Tucker, the Yellow Jackets dominated the boards, 44-35.
Board work has been the Achilles heel for the Terps, who rank No. 11 in the 12-team ACC in rebounding margin (plus 0.8). Freshman Jordan Williams (8.3 rpg) is the fourth-leading rebounder in the conference, but his slim teammate in the frontcourt, 6-7, 205-pound Landon Milbourne (4.9 rpg) plays out of position.
Rebounding woes were at the root of Maryland losses to Cincinnati — which out-boarded the Terps 45-31 — Wisconsin (33-26), and Villanova (42-30). But those defeats came early in the year, before Maryland coach Gary Williams placed junior Dino Gregory (6-7, 230) into the lineup. In each of the last four games, Gregory has played at least 20 minutes, his most extensive stretch of playing time this year.
“We were hurt without Dino Gregory,” said Williams.
While the rebounding stats don’t favor the Terps, they excel in nearly every offensive category, leading the ACC in scoring (79.8 pg), field goal shooting (47.5 percent), 3-point shooting (39.3 percent), assists (16.6 pg) and assist/turnover ratio (1.4).
Maryland enters on a seven-game winning streak and has had six days off since the regular-season final, a 74-68 win over Virginia.
“We should have a little confidence right now, a little swagger coming in,” said Milbourne. “At the same time we gotta work hard, do what’s got us to this point.”
