Terps receive No. 4 seed in Midwest region of NCAA Tournament

Sunday, several minutes after 6 p.m., a steady burst of applause echoed out of the Comcast Center's players' lounge. Gathered together to watch the NCAA Tournament Selection Special, the Terrapin men's basketball team reacted to CBS anchor Greg Gumbel's announcement that the Terps were the No. 4 seed in the Midwest region.

About a year after the Terps met in the same room to learn they were one of the last at-large entrants to squeeze into the 65-team field, this celebration was slightly different.

The din that seeped through the walls into the adjacent media room wasn't raucous jubilation or extended revelry. In fact, senior guard Eric Hayes used the word "subdued" to describe this moment in comparison to last season ,when he said many players leapt, unable to contain their excitement.

A year older and more ambitious, the Terps approached Selection Sunday more seriously.

After an early exit in the ACC Tournament, the Terps discovered their next postseason assignment Sunday night. They will take on No. 13 seed and Conference USA Tournament champion Houston in Friday's NCAA first round in Spokane, Wash., to begin a tough road in what many pundits have targeted as the bracket's toughest region.

"Knowing that we're already in the tournament means a lot, but now it's time to go," senior guard Greivis Vasquez said. "It's time for us to make it special."

The NCAA Tournament Selection Committee appears to have ensured that for the Terps to do that, they'll have to earn it.

In their region, the Terps face a potential second-round match-up with last year's national runner-up, No. 5 seed Michigan State, before a potential showdown with No. 1 overall seed Kansas if they can earn their first Sweet 16 appearance in seven years. Big Ten champion Ohio State and Big East Tournament runner-up Georgetown loom at the bottom of the 16-team region.

"Once you get into the tournament, those seeds don't mean anything," said coach Gary Williams, who will make his 17th career tournament appearance. "In other words, there's your bracket. There's who you gotta play. Whoever plays well wins this thing."

For Hayes, Sunday was about achieving a goal set before the season: To avoid sweating out the bracket announcement and wondering if his team had done enough to make the field.

Even after falling to Georgia Tech in their first ACC Tournament game on Friday, the Terps were safely positioned away from the bubble.

This season, the Terps' consistency earned them a favorable first-round date with the Cougars, who only made the field thanks to an unlikely conference tournament title run.

"Last year was a little too close for comfort," Hayes said. "We wanted to make sure this year there was no question we'd be in the tournament and get a high seed. I think we reached both those goals."

The Terps were also a No. 4 seed in 2007 and 2004.

Williams was clearly gratified by his team's top-16 seeding. The 21st-year coach said this team — which was picked to finish fifth in the conference preseason poll only to earn a share of the regular season title — has exceeded his expectations as much as any in at least 15 years.

After failing to secure a signature nonconference win during a rocky start to the season, the Terps cemented their NCAA Tournament case by winning their last seven regular season games.

"We had to come from pretty far back," Williams said. "We weren't getting much play for a long time this year."

Now, they'll look to improve on last season's performance, when they continued a late season surge by upsetting No. 7 seed California in a first-round tilt before falling to No. 2 seed Memphis.

After the announcement, the seniors sat side-by-side at a table in the Comcast Center media room and barely cracked a smile when talking about what traditionally is one of the more fun nights for a top college basketball team.

Vasquez said the team wants to be serious. Forward Landon Milbourne talked about maintaining intensity to avoid more sluggish starts, such as the one that derailed them against the Yellow Jackets on Friday.

For the seniors, at least, this Selection Sunday was just the first step toward finishing their careers in memorable fashion.

"This year we're more focused and we know we can do damage in the tournament," Hayes said. "We can get far if we play as well as we can."

edetweiler@umdbk.com