NCAA Game Of The Week: Maryland Visits North Carolina
By Nathan Giese
This week’s Game of the Week in college hoops features No. 2 Maryland facing No. 9 North Carolina and their new (old) toy in Chapel Hill.
One of the best things about college sports is that there are always a number of intriguing games every night of the week, but there’s also one game that stands out among the rest, one game that has so much wrapped into it that it’s almost too good to pass up.
That defines the Game of the Week, which will be a new feature, taking a look some of the best games offered up on television.
What was once pegged as a potential No. 1 vs. No. 2 battle between former conference rivals has taken a bit of a hit in terms of rankings, but this one still has plenty to look forward to.
This week marks the annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge which pits some of the best non-conference games in college basketball. Last season’s event witnessed Duke take down Wisconsin in what proved to be a preview for the eventual national championship game.
Though it’s far too early to say Maryland (ranked second in the latest AP rankings and first in the Hoops Habit rankings) visiting North Carolina (ninth in AP; sixth in HH) could be the same thing, this does have a big fight feel to it (pardon the cliche).
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Projected Starting Lineups:
Maryland – Melo Trimble, Rasheed Sulaimon, Jake Layman, Robert Carter and Diamond Stone.
North Carolina – Marcus Paige, Theo Pinson, Justin Jackson, Brice Johnson and Kennedy Meeks.
Maryland’s starting five is still working out the chemistry a bit with Sulaimon, Carter and Stone all being new additions. Thus far, the group has performed well enough to earn a 6-0 record and outscore their opponents by an average of 14.3 points per game.
Some of the games have been closer than expected, sure, but the kinks are still being worked out for a team with incredible potential.
The Tar Heels are expected to get a major boost for this game with senior guard Paige set to make his season debut against the Terrapins. UNC has been without their floor general through the first six games and suffered a narrow defeat at Northern Iowa without him.
Other pieces, including Joel Berry and Theo Pinson, showed they are capable of being major contributors to the team in Paige’s absence, though they are also still trying to get comfortable with their new roles.
Both teams feature four players averaging double-digit scoring numbers through their first six games with Trimble, Layman, Sulaimon and Carter leading the Terps and Jackson, Berry, Johnson and Meeks heading the Tar Heels’ charge.
This will be Maryland’s first true road game of the season and they venture into historic Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill.
Not the ideal setting for your team’s first road challenge. Mark Turgeon’s team will need to get accustomed to hostile environments, though, because as the Big Ten favorite and three road games in the first four to open up conference play, Maryland’s going to be tested and harassed. Better to get use to it now and have a chance to earn a signature victory in the process.
Roy Williams’ squad has posted a 41-10 home record since the start of the 2012-13 season, but that also includes a loss to Iowa in last year’s ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
Key Matchup – Paige vs. Trimble
There’s a few options for this but with the return of Paige, his matchup with Trimble is the most intriguing one-on-one pairing in this game.
Both point guards have potential in the NBA, as do a number of players in this game. Trimble turned down the NBA after last season to return to Maryland and refine his game. He’s still a scorer but his assists numbers are slightly up. Currently, he’s on pace to dish out 126 assists in a 35-game season after totaling 106 last season.
Even though it’s not a huge bump, it’s one aspect he needed to expand on to be a pro point guard, so he’s working on it.
Paige may not be the pro prospect Trimble is, but he presents a matchup nightmare for most guards in the country and that includes the mellow one.
Of course, we won’t know for sure just how effective Paige will be with his off hand (right hand where he broke a bone). It could take some time for Paige to be the type of player he’s fully capable of. What he’s capable of, though, is pretty great.
What UNC is hoping to get out of Paige is another three-point shooting threat on the floor, something they knew they had to improve on and something that’s still alluding them this season.
Last season, the Tar Heels shot 35 percent from this. Through six games this season, UNC is shooting just 32 percent. Much of that has to do with Paige’s absence, but the rest of the team isn’t carrying their end of the bargain.
Pinson (42) and Nate Britt (43) are the only Tar Heels shooting over 31 percent from three and almost all of UNC’s three-point attempts have come from Pinson, Britt, Berry and Jackson. There isn’t a lot of consistency right now beyond the arc and Paige can certainly help that, but it may not happen in this game.
Key To The Game – Inside Game
Maryland has done a nice job of implementing their new bigs Carter and Stone into the game plan while Carolina has used Johnson and Meeks as their primary offensive leaders while the perimeter shooting starts to sort itself out.
Meeks and Johnson are a very versatile combination for bigs. Mid-range shooting, aggressive inside and both with fantastic vision in the passing lanes, UNC has a great duo in the post. This will be a very nice test for Maryland’s bigs, especially for Stone.
A true freshman coming in in a high-pressure situation in the first true road game of the year on national television against a top 10 ranked team is when some young players start to make their mark. Stone has opportunity, but is he ready for it?
Johnson’s collected five double-doubles in the first six games of the season, so he’ll be looking to keep that number going here.
Prediction – Lots of Fun, Some Odd Stretches
One thing that’s prevalent in this game is that we really don’t know what to expect from it.
Maryland and UNC were both ranked in the top five in the preseason. The Tar Heels suffered a loss, but it’s not a season ender. The Terrapins have won every game but hasn’t looked fluid thus far.
There’s a lot of mystery surrounding this one, especially with Paige returning to the fold. It may take some time to fully get back on track, but he’s there. How much of an impact he has on the game remains to be seen, but it’s something to watch.
However, the best part of this game is that it’s a true home-road game. Sure we’ve gotten some good neutral court battles in Kentucky-Duke and Michigan State-Kansas plus some good tournament games, but what makes college sports so fun is an electric venue. It doesn’t always have to carry history with it, but the Smith Center does, which only adds to it.
Next: Wisconsin Has More Problems Than Expected
Atmosphere is a huge piece to college sports and this game should have a great one. Look for that to play a role in the game from a competition standpoint as well as a viewership standpoint.
College basketball is back and in full swing. Now is when it gets really good.