Terps turn the corner

Remember when the Terrapins men's basketball team was embarrassed by mid-majors Ohio and American in consecutive home games in December?

It's difficult to believe that's the same group of players that so confidently traveled to North Carolina and upset the No. 1 Tar Heels, then gave No. 4 Duke everything it could handle last night at an electric Comcast Center.

The post-game mood in the locker room didn't reflect it, and the standings won't show it, but dominating the Blue Devils for a half, and coming up just short of another stunner should be very encouraging to the Terps.

It proves that last week's win was not a fluke, and confirms that this team can compete with most teams in America. College basketball fans who have watched the Terps' last two nationally televised games have to wonder how that mediocre 12-8 record came about.

"We know we're capable of playing with the top teams in the nation," senior James Gist said. "I strongly believe that we could be a top team in the nation, but we have to want it every night. We gotta want to come out and play hard every night, and that's the difference between us and the top teams in the nation."

Gist has been the main reason for the Terps' mini-turnaround, as he has had career games against two of the country's elite teams. He had 26 points last night, and played the part of a dominant go-to-guy, just as he did last weekend in Chapel Hill.

Gist's frontcourt mate Bambale Osby was also impressive in both big games. He was the catalyst of the Terps' stirring start against Duke and along with Gist, drew big praise from a very notable coach.

"Osby and Gist gave us, and will give a lot of people, problems," Mike Krzyzewski said. "They're very poised ... A lot of people have trouble with them, and we'll continue to have trouble with them because they're good."

Sophomore forward Landon Milbourne said the Terps' inspired play all stems from senior leaders Osby and Gist. When they put it all out there on the court - like they have been doing lately - the younger players respond. For a team with so many of those younger guys, the example the two big men have set is huge.

"I definitely think we're a different team," Milbourne said, comparing the current Terps to the November/December version. "I think we're a lot more mature."

It would have to be a different team to score 51 in the first half against a high-pressure Duke defense which hadn't allowed as many points to any other team this year. We're talking about a Terps team that scored in the 50s for a complete game against the likes of Ohio and American.

Even the often dissatisfied Gary Williams was intrigued by his team's performance.

"We played great for most of the game tonight," coach Gary Williams said. "That's how we played against North Carolina: just like that."

As they exited the court, Terps players received a well-deserved applause from the fans - a far cry from when they were being booed off the court earlier in the season.

With a presumably different team taking the court, it will be interesting to see how the 2008 Terps finish out the season. But with eight losses just 20 games in, any late-season push will have to be remarkable for them to be NCAA-tournament bound.

If the Terps end up playing a home NIT game in March instead of one on the floor of the big dance, it probably won't be indicative of the way they played their ACC schedule. They will have sub-par outings against sub-par teams to blame for that, certainly not losses like last night's.

At the rate of their improvement and the way they've played their last two games, the Terps certainly seem capable of putting together the type of big run they'll need. "By the time March comes around we're gonna be a real great team," Milbourne said.

But the question that remains: What kind of postseason tournament will that "great team" be playing in?

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