Wednesday's Game: Clemson at Maryland

Feb 23, 2010, 9:59 AM

Bump with the spread added

Who: Clemson (19-7, 7-5 ACC) at Maryland (19-7, 9-3)
When: Wednesday, 9 p.mp. in the Comcast Center
Is it on TV? It's on Raycom, if you can pull yourself away from ice dancing.

My eyes! My eyes!
When Last We Met: An ugly, UGLY game won by the Tigers in Littlejohn. We're talking hot tub date with Kathy Bates ugly. No Stitt, flu-riddled Trevor Booker misses his first 12 shots and still the Tigers prevailed.
The Line: Maryland by 4.5 points.
If we beat them without Stitt and with a sick Booker, why are the Terps favored? Good question. We'll try to get to the bottom of things.

Egregious Vasquez: A vision in dog-pee yellow
Any discussion of Maryland, which has whipped itself into a pretty dang good run since that ugly loss to Clemson, begins with Greivis Vasquez (19 ppg, 5 reb, 6 ast) The senior has become a media darling of late, and with good reason. He's scored in double figures in every game since Thanksgiving (including 10 at Clemson), he's done much better with the ball since his 9 turnovers against the Tigers and since the Terps are winning, he's seen as a fiery competitor, rather than a whiny distraction.

But he's the same Vasquez we all grown to know and hate. He's still solid at the line, can't hit a 3 if someone is in his face and is prone to foul against top flight guards.

A bigger reason for the Terps' recent improvement is the emergence of freshman big man and possible one-and-doner Jordan Williams (9 ppg, 9 reb, averaging a double-double in ACC play) He give the Terps an inside presence they lacked in losing to teams like Cincy and William and Mary earlier this year. And his 13 point-13 board game at Clemson was one reason our inside play looked so marginal. He still has a tendency to foul down low, but Williams is a strong indicator of the Terps fortunes in this game.

Other players to watch: Landon Milbourne (13 ppg, 6 reb) was totally shut down in the game at Littlejohn and looked Gawdawful against Duke and GTech, but keeps tossing up shots. He can hit ... we just need to hope he waits another game before recovering his shooting touch.

Eric Hayes (10 ppg, 4 ast, 45 percent from the arc) is a dangerous outside shooter who can handle the ball. It's feast or famine with his shooting, and we got him on an off night in Littlejohn. Sean Mosley (10 ppg,5 reb) has been sort of quiet for the past month and has only take 5 threes. Dino Gregory is seeing more minutes at forward, and the hero against GTech, Cliff Tucker has been finding the range from long distance.

As a team, the Turtles like an up-tempo game, much like Clemson does. Contrary to the Littlejohn game, they take care of the ball well, shoot well at the line and have the size to hold their own on the boards. They also have momentum. Since last we played, the Turtles have lost only once, to Duke.

There are a few weaknesses the Tigers can exploit, however:

1. Hound Vasquez: Tanner Smith's defense against the Terp guard was THE key in our win earlier. No doubt the Terps will be expecting the same thing Wednesday night, and will have planned some wrinkles. But just by making Maryland adjust, you've taken a key component from their offense.You don't have to force him into turnovers, just make him give up the ball. In losses to Clemson, Duke and Wake, taking the ball out of his hands was a key.

2. Hit the boards: Strange that a team with Maryland's size allows so many offensive boards. But the Terps are one of the worst teams in the ACC in allowing them. Clemson is built for hitting the offensive boards, and unless we're shooting lights-out from the wing, there will be plenty of opportunities.

3. Keep pushing: Since both teams like the up-tempo, keep pushing. There are two reasons this will benefit the Tigers: Clemson goes deeper on the bench (Maryland has 5 players getting 20 minutes or more to 7 for Clemson...and Maryland has 3 players getting 30-plus minutes to 0 for Clemson). As the game wears on, Clemson's press and depth will begin to tell.

Plus, this is the 5th game in 12 days for Maryland, and the 3rd for Clemson. It's a small difference, but late in the game, it may be a huge one.

Ask who I am after the game, Vaseline!

How will the Tigers respond? For openers, I hope we'll play a lot cleaner than in Littlejohn. According to records, it was the worst shooting in a win for Clemson in 13 years.

But this is a stronger, healthier, certainly more confident Clemson team than the one that scrapped to a win a month ago. Demontez Stitt (10 ppg, 4 ast) is on the floor, giving fellow guard Andre Young (9 ppg, better than 50 percent from the arc in the last 4 games) freedom to shoot. Ask Fla.State and Miami what that means.

Also Trevor Booker (15 ppg, 9 reb, a bucket of assists the past month) is healthy ... which should give the Terps cause for concern. he had 10 points and 16 boards against them while horking with the flu. Plus the dogged insistence of ACC opponents to double him has given wingman Jerai Grant (18 points, 12 board the last Maryland game) a month to become a human highlight reel. If Grant can avoid foul trouble (which is a concern on the road) he and Booker could absolutely own the inside.

Tanner Smith (only 1 double-figure game in the past month) will likely use his energy in disrupting Vasquez, while David Potter (45 percent form the arc in the last 5 games) will step up and provide addition outside shooting.

Johnson and Jennings have made strides

Perhaps the most intriguing wild card will be the play of freshmen Milt Jennings and Noel Johnson. Both had solid home stands, and Jennings especially has shown an improved touch around the rim. That was at home, though...will it translate to the road?

What's the verdict? I feel good about this game. While Maryland has been on a roll lately, of their last 8 wins, only 1 was against an ACC team with a league record above .500. They're good, but they ain't great.

Clemson has the talent and size to stay with the Terps. The Comcast Center doesn't seem to hold a particular dread, either. After watching Maryland's legs get weary in that last-gasp win over GTech, I truly believe Clemson can take the game to the Turtles.

Besides, the road doesn't get any easier from here. If there's a shot for us to steal a road game, this is it.

Message was edited by: RevDodd®