Wanted: more Mosley

It became obvious as the second half wore on last night that the Terrapins basketball team's fate would rest exclusively on the play of guard Terrell Stoglin.

Stoglin certainly did his part, putting up a game-high 25 points and dominating play against Illinois for stretches at a time.

But after the Terps let a four-point first-half lead disintegrate into a 71-62 loss, it's clear they need someone else to bear some of the scoring burden.

The answer lies in the only Terp to play more minutes than Stoglin last night: Sean Mosley.

The senior captain finished with just five points on four field goal attempts in 34 minutes of play last night, and if the Terps can expect any success this season, they'll need him to find his scoring touch.

"Sean was saying that he felt that he should have been more aggressive," Stoglin said. "I feel if he stays more aggressive, we'll win the game."

There's no knocking what Mosley does outside of the scoreboard.

He's a tenacious defender. He moves the ball well. He's proven more than capable in helping out a depleted Terps frontcourt on the glass. Most importantly, he's an emotional leader on the court.

But while the Terps certainly need those intangibles, they need a consistent secondary scorer more, and Mosley has to be that guy.

Forward James Padgett, who put up a career-high 16 points in last night's loss, has been better in the paint than most expected, but the Terps' lack of frontcourt depth makes consistent scoring down low unrealistic.

Freshman guard Nick Faust certainly has the talent to do it, but you can't bank on an unpolished freshman — at least, not yet.

So, again, it comes back to Mosley.

He's shown glimpses of the scoring ability that made him a highly touted recruit coming out of Baltimore throughout his four-year career.

In Puerto Rico two weeks ago, he posted 21 points against Iona and 16 against Colorado to help pace the Terps' offense. And don't forget his 26-point outburst against No. 3 Villanova back in 2009.

Still, the Terps are going to need more performances like that out of the senior this year if they harbor any hopes of competing in the ACC.

But beyond the occasional scoring outburst from Mosley, who was not made available for comment last night, the Terps just need him to be a consistent option.

In the Terps' loss to then-No. 16 Alabama, he posted four points.

Against Florida Gulf Coast on Friday, he had six points.

And in five of the Terps' six games, Mosley has eight or fewer field-goal attempts. For one of the team's best shooters — he's shooting 45 percent from beyond the arc — that's simply unacceptable.

Coach Mark Turgeon placed some of the blame for Mosley's invisibility last night on a disjointed offensive attack in the second half.

But he still recognized how important Mosley is to his offense.

"The last two days, we've actually put in two new plays just for Sean and we tried to run them," Turgeon said. "Sean has to get more shots. He had six last game, he had four this game. It's not enough."

Stoglin's proven he can carry the offense. But he's also prone to reckless play — his turnovers and low-percentage shots can kill momentum as quickly as his explosiveness builds it up.

A steady second option would help temper that, and Mosley's got to be the guy.

So the Terps should listen to Turgeon and get the ball to their captain. And when he gets the ball, have Mosley take control. Establish himself. Just shoot it.

cwalsh@umdbk.com