Terps’ path to Sweet 16 runs through Alabama
Maryland enters as underdog for game in Tide’s backyard
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Congratulations, No. 8 seed Maryland men’s basketball, on rallying from a 12-point deficit in the first half and then a nine-point hole in the second to overcome No. 9 seed West Virginia, 67-65, on Thursday afternoon in an NCAA Tournament first-round game at Legacy Arena.
Your reward? A second-round date with the overall No. 1 seed in the tournament in front of what is surely to be a heavily partisan crowd on a Saturday night.
That is the fate that awaits the Terps (22-12), who will try to reach their 15th Sweet 16 by taking down Alabama (30-5) at approximately 9:40 p.m. in a venue that is less than an hour-long drive from the university’s main campus in Tuscaloosa.
Oddsmakers don’t give Maryland much of a chance against the Crimson Tide. As of Friday afternoon, the Terps listed as 8 ½point underdogs, and Alabama was almost a 4-to-1 favorite to win the game.
“I don’t really pay attention to stuff like that until it gets brought up to me — like this, like right now,” sophomore power forward Julian Reese (St. Frances) said with a smile. “We just play, we just practice. We see and watch film and know that they’re a pretty good team. That’s pretty much how we judge it.”
Coach Kevin Willard joked that he hoped Auburn fans attending the earlier second-round game between No. 9 seed Auburn and No. 1 seed Houston would stick around for the nightcap.
“I’m hoping Auburn wins because then their fans will stick around,” he said. “I’m afraid, if Auburn loses, then at 9:40 at night, knowing Auburn fans, they’re probably going to the bar.”
That earth-shaking noise you hear is the Crimson Tide, winners of the Southeastern Conference regular-season and tournament crowns, walking around carrying the weight of the country. As of Wednesday afternoon, 22.7% of the brackets submitted to CBS Sports picked Alabama to win the national championship with fellow No. 1 seed Houston at second at 13.8%.
That adulation is not unwarranted. The Crimson Tide have defeated seven ranked opponents, including North Carolina and Houston when they topped the national polls, and 14 teams in the field, which is tied for the most by a single team with No. 1 seed Kansas and No. 2 seed Texas.
Alabama owns the best neutral-court record this season at 8-0, although it could be in a three-way tie by Saturday morning if No. 1 seed Purdue defeats No. 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson and No. 12 seed Drake upsets No. 5 seed Miami on Friday night.
The Crimson Tide have already set a school record for most wins in a single season. Even with freshman phenom small forward Brandon Miller failing to score a point for the first time in his college career because of a groin injury that coach Nate Oats said he has been dealing with since the win in the SEC Tournament final on Sunday, the team dropped 96 points in a 21-point thumping of No. 16 seed Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Thursday afternoon.
The likelihood of Miller (19.1 points per game) — whose name was included in court testimony surrounding the capital murder case of former teammate Darius Miles and another man, who are charged in the shooting death of 23-year-old Jamea Harris on Jan. 15 — repeating that outing seems unlikely. And graduate student point guard Jahmir Young said the team is preparing as if Miller will be fully healthy for Saturday.
“I feel like we’ll see the best of him tomorrow,” he said.
And Willard said too much attention on Miller opens the doors for junior shooting guard Mark Sears (12.9) and freshman power forward Noah Clowney (10.3) to make an impact.
“I think this is the most talented roster I’ve seen in college basketball since the [1994-95] Kentucky team,” Willard said, referring to the Elite Eight squad that featured Antoine Walker and Walter McCarty. “This team reminds me of that team with the length, athleticism, how unselfish they play.”
But it’s not all doom and gloom for the Terps, who have stared down their fair share of talented opponents. This season, they have already defeated then-No. 3 Purdue (68-54 on Feb. 16), then-No. 16 Illinois (71-66 on Dec. 2), then-No. 21 Indiana (66-55 on Jan. 31), then-No. 21 Northwestern (75-59 on Feb. 26) and then-No. 24 Ohio State (80-73 on Jan. 8).
If the players need any more incentive, they can talk to senior small forward Donta Scott and senior shooting guard Hakim Hart, who were on the 2021 squad that got sent home in the second round by Alabama.
“I’m pretty sure those guys are going to play with a chip on their shoulder tomorrow,” said senior point guard Jahvon Quinerly, who was a member of that Crimson Tide squad. “That’s what I’ve been telling the team. These guys, they’re going to be ready to play.”
And since the selection started ranking the No. 1 seeds in 2004, only three overall No. 1 seeds have captured the NCAA Tournament: Florida in 2007, Kentucky in 2012 and Louisville in 2013. And the No. 1 overall seed has lost in the second round three times.
So why not add a fourth to that list?
Said Scott: “We’re going to go out there and do what we know we can do, and that’s beat top-tier teams and just go out there and play our best basketball.”