Another chance wasted

WASHINGTON — Taken by itself, this one game is nothing to worry about.
Sure, the Terrapin men’s basketball team lost by nine in front of what was essentially a home crowd at Verizon Center.

Sure, the Terps’ perimeter defense in the first half was just a mirage, they gave up 23 offensive rebounds to a team that often plays with four guards, and guard Greivis Vasquez struggled his way through a performance sullied by questionable fouls and was limited to 12 points to go with seven turnovers.

But, really, the Terps’ 95-86 loss to No. 3 Villanova in the BB&T Classic last night should not be an additional burden on your mind before finals.

The Wildcats are legitimately one of the best teams in the country. They are the favorite to win the Big East, and they have a very good shot at reaching the Final Four for the second consecutive season.

A win last night simply would have been gravy.

But what you should be worried about is the Terps have now missed their last opportunity to earn an impressive nonconference win to boost their NCAA Tournament résumé come March.

The Terps had three chances to pick up a signature win before ACC play — twice at the Maui Invitational against Cincinnati and Wisconsin, and here last night — and each time the Terps whiffed.

The win against Indiana at Assembly Hall last week was nice, but it remains to be seen how much weight a victory over the rebuilding Hoosiers is ultimately going to carry.

If the Terps are going to get back to the Big Dance this year — and with this roster it would be a huge disappointment if they didn’t — it is now apparent the Terps are going to have to make some serious moves in the ACC.

The NCAA Tournament selection committee isn’t exactly going to be wowed by a home win against Charleston Southern or Fairfield.

“You don’t play a lot of teams as good as Villanova,” coach Gary Williams said. “But when we play teams that good, we have to be able to win those games. That’s going to be our goal.”

What’s disappointing about this loss and makes it worth adding to this missed opportunity discussion is that it was actually a winnable game.

The Terps had their chances last night. They just showed up at the party a little late.
The Wildcats came out firing from long range, as they are prone to do, and they were able to make some shots and give themselves a nice cushion before the Terps were able to adjust their defense.

Once the Terps switched to a zone, they forgot about rebounding when they didn’t have a specific man to box out, and the Wildcats killed them on the offensive glass.

The Terps went on a nice run, fueled by budding star guard Sean Mosley and guard Eric Hayes, early in the second half, and they somewhat surprisingly pulled to within three with 13:34 to play.

But then it seemed the Terps tried to win the game in the first five seconds of the shot clock every time they touched the ball, and they never got any closer despite having three consecutive possessions in which they could have tied it.

“We were right there. We had them within three in the second half,” center Jordan Williams said. “A couple more breaks here and there and we could have beaten that team.”

But those breaks didn’t come, and now the Terps are left facing just four cupcakes and an admittedly tough William & Mary team on their schedule before the conference opener against Florida State on January 10.

Who knows? Maybe the Terps will go 10-6 or 11-5 in the ACC, make a run in the ACC Tournament, and render all of this moot. Maybe they’ll beat Duke or UNC again and get the glamorous win that will separate them from the pack.

But you can’t count on wins like that in the conference every year, even if those opportunities are always going to be in the ACC.

It just would have been nice for the Terps to have a big-name win in their back pocket before New Year’s.

Now we know that isn’t going to happen.

schimmel@umdbk.com