Talking to a Terp: Turtle Waxing

During football season I did a weekly feature called "5 good questions" featuring a blogger from the opposition. I haven't done it so far this basketball season because many of our non-conference opponents don't have anyone blogging for them, there didn't seem to be too much demand, and frankly I was somewhat lazy about it.

Now that we're getting into the bulk of the ACC schedule I figured it would be fun to bring it back, so this week I asked five questions of Matt from Turtle Waxing. His answers follow below, and you'll find my answers to his questions over on Turtle Waxing.

Although Maryland's record isn't overly impressive so far this season, most of the team's losses have come in games that appear to have been reasonably close. How does this team seem to be responding to those tough losses? Does Saturday's one point loss to Virginia Tech motivate this team or discourage it?

Turtle Waxing: After losing a tough game to BC earlier in the year that they probably should have won if not for the technical foul on Greivis Vasquez the Terps dropped games to Ohio and American at home. I'd say they didn't deal with that loss very well. This isn't the most mentally tough team that Gary Williams has ever had so I don't expect them to turn things around. They may play better if they feel their backs are against the wall but in reality this team is only playing for an NIT birth at this point.

The Terps seem to have some great senior leadership from forward James Gist but also a younger spark with guard Greivis Vasquez. What should Wake fans expect to see out of these two on Tuesday night?

TW: Gist has been a disappointment at times this season. He got stripped in the closing minutes of the Virginia Tech loss and fouled out of both the American and Ohio losses. He isn't consistent enough to provide that reliable scoring threat the team needs which explains the inconsistent 10-7 record. Vasquez had one of his worst games at Maryland the other day. He went 2/14 and was truly awful for most of the afternoon. Given that it is a home game I'd expect those two to play better against Wake.

What are the keys to a Maryland victory?

TW: Hitting shots. Simple enough but it really tells the tail of the season. If they are settling for jump shots that are not going in then it is going to be a long night. The defense has been solid for most of the year but they can't generate offense. If Vasquez and Gist play well early that is a good indicator. Gist especially needs to show an aggressive mindset.

Fan morale seems to be pretty low right now for Maryland. Are the fans really ready to throw in the towel at this point?

TW: I think so. This is probably the least talented team Gary Williams has had in 15 years. The freshmen have offered very little and there are no signs that anyone will improve significantly. I think the NIT is about all this group can hope for now. With bad losses to Ohio and American and the best out of conference win over a struggling Illinois team they are probably out of the running for an NCAA bid already.

Time for some predictions: Final score against Wake and final ACC record. Will there be a post-season appearance?

TW: I think it will be a low scoring game with lots of turnovers. I'd say 71-67 Maryland, but I would not be shocked at all if Wake comes in and steals a road win. This group has already lost 3 games at home and blew their best chance for a road win against a terrible Virginia Tech squad. As for Maryland's record I'd probably put my money on a 5-11 season in the ACC which may get them 10th place. That would leave them with a 15-16 overall record and no NIT bid. The talent just isn't there in this group even in a weak ACC.

Once again big thanks to Matt at Turtle Waxing for taking the time. Hopefully he'll be wrong on that prediction! Head on over there and see my answers to his questions and any other Maryland news that might interest you.