Maryland coach Gary Williams wants to make it perfectly clear regarding his team?s upcoming schedule.
“We?re not worried about Duke and Carolina,” he said. “We?re worried about Wake Forest.”
That?s because after dropping their first two Atlantic Coast Conference games, the Terrapins (10-7, 0-2 league) can?t afford to lose to Wake Forest (11-4, 1-1) tonight at 9 at Comcast Center. The Terrapins play at top-ranked North Carolina (18-0, 2-0) on Saturday afternoon at 3:30 before hosting No. 5 Duke (13-1, 1-0) on Jan. 27.
“We?re not that far away from being more competitive,” Williams said. “Hopefully, we can channel all that into our games this coming week.”
The Terrapins are coming off a 67-66 loss at Virginia Tech in a game in which Jeff Allen?s free throw with 12.4 seconds remaining ended Maryland?s four-game winning streak.
Wake Forest, however, was crushed at Boston College, 112-73, on Saturday to end a six-game winning streak.
Williams feels his young team ? the Terrapins start just two seniors ? is close to coming together. But it?s unknown if the Terrapins will have sophomore guard Eric Hayes (sprained ankle) back in the lineup, which would mean more playing time for freshman Adrian Bowie. Bowie came off the bench to score 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting in 28 minutes against the Hokies.
“Hopefully, he can continue to do that,” Williams said. “He?s been on an upswing the past few weeks, and it really showed in the Virginia Tech game.”
Wake Forest first-year coach Dino Gaudio is concerned with the rest of the Terrapins, especially sophomore Greivis Vasquez, who is averaging 16.5 points per game despite hitting just 2-of-14 field goals against the Hokies.
“Vasquez is very, very good, despite not shooting the ball very well the other night,” Gaudio said. “We have to do well against Osby and Gist inside. As long as we?re playing well, we?ll stick with our guys.”
Williams is familiar with Gaudio, the former Loyola Greyhounds head coach who was promoted from assistant to head coach at Wake Forest when Skip Prosser died this past July.
“His head coaching experience helps him in his situation this year,” Williams said. “He?s done a great job. Wake brings a lot of enthusiasm to the court, and I?m sure they?re working very hard for Dino.”
TERRAPINS (10-7 overall, 0-2 ACC) VS. WAKE FOREST (11-4 overall, 1-1 ACC)
» Tipoff: Tonight, 9
» Where: Comcast Center
» TV/Radio: WNUV, 105.7 FM,106.7 FM, 1300 AM
