CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Terrapins men's basketball coach Mark Turgeon knew his team needed a boost with his team's game against Miami quickly slipping away Wednesday night.
Hurricanes guard Rion Brown nailed a corner 3-pointer to give Miami a double-digit lead, and Terps point guard Pe'Shon Howard lost control of the ball on the next possession to give it right back with less than eight minutes remaining.
In the ensuing media timeout, Turgeon elected for a full-court press. He had no way of knowing what would transpire next.
Trailing by 11 with 7:32 left in the game, the Terps lined up with a man mirroring the inbounds passer, and two others flanking Hurricanes guards, for one of the first times this season. Guards Sean Mosley and Nick Faust trapped a Hurricanes ball handler in the corner, and Faust came up with a steal.
The freshman turned around, made a hard move to the basket but picked up an offensive foul as he went up for a layup. Turgeon would get ejected moments later for arguing the call, and Miami soon seized a 16-point lead.
But the press, and the coach's technical fouls, proved to be just what the Terps needed. Assistant Scott Spinelli maintained the pressure for the rest of the way, leading to a 23-7 run to end regulation and force overtime.
"They got flustered down at the end," Mosley said. "We almost got a couple 10-second calls on them. It decreased the shot clock. We were just trying to speed them up and get stops to get back in the game."
Down nine with just more than three minutes to play, the Terps forced a bad 3-point attempt and then three consecutive turnovers. The extra defensive pressure led to a 9-0 run to end regulation.
TURGEON'S EJECTION
Few in college basketball could match the intensity of former coach Gary Williams during his 22 years on the sideline with the Terps.
His replacement, though, might come close. Turgeon picked up his first two technical fouls as Terps coach within a 10-second span in the second half against the Hurricanes. The first-year coach could be seen yelling and motioning at referee Brian Dorsey after Faust was called for an offensive foul.
After Turgeon was assessed his first technical foul, Spinelli attempted to hold Turgeon back, but he couldn't quell the coach's rising emotions.
For as fierce a coach Turgeon is on the sidelines, Spinelli — his right-hand man the past six years at Wichita State, Texas A&M and now in College Park — couldn't recall a time when he got tossed.
"You never want the head coach to get thrown out of a game," Spinelli said. "It happens, and I think Coach Turgeon did it for great purpose, to be quite honest with you. It wasn't done because he's a hothead or anything. He did it to get his team fired up, and he left it with us assistant coaches to get our guys rallied and they rallied for their head coach."
Williams received only two ejections during his career, once at Florida State in the 1996-97 season and then again at Duke the next year.
"I wasn't trying to get kicked out," Turgeon said afterward. "I apologize for doing that."
Turgeon will be allowed back on the sideline against North Carolina tomorrow, the ACC announced yesterday.
LEN BREAKS OUT
A big reason for the Terps' 16-point comeback Wednesday night was the second-half play of freshman center Alex Len.
The Ukrainian finished with 11 points and eight rebounds, totals that surpassed his production in the previous four games combined. Len started the second half in place of forward Ashton Pankey and scored two quick baskets and blocked a Miami shot that led to a Terrell Stoglin 3-pointer.
He also took advantage of Miami's foul trouble down the stretch. Miami forwards Reggie Johnson and Raphael Akpejiori both fouled out before the end of regulation, leaving Len towering over the remaining Hurricanes for both overtime periods.
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