After benching, Stoglin comes in to score 22 points, lead Terps past UNCW
At Comcast Center on Sunday night, it only looked as if Mark Turgeon had ripped his suit jacket straight up the back. Actually, it was a microphone with an antenna, chronicling his every utterance in his Maryland debut.
It’s fair to say that much of his dialogue will have to be edited, at least that from the first 12 minutes. After struggling early, Maryland got its offense in gear and subdued UNC Wilmington of the Colonial Athletic Association, 71-62.
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It was a tough matchup for the Terps, who had seven scholarship players available, while the Seahawks rotated 12 and played a variety of defenses. But Maryland improved as the game progressed.
“I was really proud of my group tonight,” Turgeon said. “They threw a lot at us tonight and I thought we adjusted pretty well.”
With 6-8 junior James Padgett (12 points, seven rebounds) scoring back-to-back baskets to start the second half and sophomore guard Terrell Stoglin (22 points) following with a fast-break layup, the Terps pushed their lead to double-digits.
But UNCW, also playing its opener, stayed close thanks to the shooting of freshman guard Adam Smith (23 points) who hit five three-pointers in his college debut. The 6-foot-1 Smith was poised to cut the Maryland lead to four points with 80 seconds left as he sailed down the lane for a fast-break layup. But Terps’ 6-4 guard Sean Mosley (eight points, six rebounds) swatted his shot out of bounds and the Seahawks followed with a turnover. When freshman Nick Faust (seven points, six rebounds) hit a pair of free throws with 61 seconds left, Maryland’s lead was safe at 67-59.
“I didn’t think we were going to lose tonight, ever,” Turgeon said.
It was no surprise that the understated Turgeon entered to little fanfare. But it was alarming that Stoglin, the Terps top returning scorer, was on the bench to start the game. He was in soon enough however to score the Terps’ second field goal, less than four minutes into the game.
Turgeon didn’t reveal why he benched Stoglin, but minimized the decision.
“Guys gotta do things a certain way. It’s nothing big,” Turgeon said. “Terrell played his tail off tonight.”
After a ragged start, the Maryland offense clicked in the last eight minutes of the first half, converting on nine of 10 possessions to take the lead for good. The Terrapins worked hard for their points in the surge, all of which came on layups or from the free-throw line. Padgett and 6-9 freshman Ashton Pankey (13 points, eight rebounds) pounded for a pair of buckets each as the Terps took a 25-18 lead.
The play of both the Terps big men was a major positive. Padgett exceeded his career high and combined with Pankey to hit 11 of 17 shots from the floor and lead Maryland to a 34-28 edge on the boards.
“I have a great opportunity to show people what I’m capable of,” Padgett said. “We’re not very deep in scholarship players so we all have to do our best, do what we can for the team.”
Stoglin’s play was critical, especially in the first half, when Maryland needed a spark as it struggled against the variety of zone defenses used by UNCW coach Buzz Peterson. The 6-1 guard scored 14 of his points in the first half. He also finished off the Seahawks making four free throws in the final 36 seconds.
“He guarded. He was in his stance. He was in position and he played shots,” Turgeon said. “I think the things that happened, that transpired for him not to be in the starting lineup today allowed him to play the way he did.”
Stoglin said he was motivated, sitting the first few minutes.
“I felt like it gave me a good spark. I felt like I was more concentrated,” Stoglin said. “I wanted to show coach that I wanted to play defense this game and I wanted to get my teammates involved also.”
Notes: The night’s highlight came on a fast-break when sophomore guard Mychal Parker (five points) passed to Mosley who lobbed back for Parker for an emphatic two-handed slam … Maryland missed all nine of its attempts from beyond the 3-point line … Walk-ons John Auslander and Jonathan Thomas played five and four minutes repectively for Maryland, neither scoring … Maryland plays No. 19 Alabama in the first round of the Puerto Rico Tip-Off on Thursday.
