Beltway Basketball Beat: Upgrades Outside puts the Terps back on the inside track

So when Terps made 5-23 (22%) of their 3s against Manhattan in November’s seasonal opener, head coach Kevin Willard’s confidence things can be different this winter that may have been greeted with a little bit of skepticism.

But he knew, then, that he and his staff had addressed the program’s long-distance shooting-events during the peak season, and it would only be a matter of time before his team would start connecting.

Go into a trio of transfers – Selton Miguel from South Florida, Rodney Rice from Virginia Tech and Ja’kobi Gillespie from Belmont.

“Selton shot 40% on catch-and-shoot 3s. We knew how good of a shooter Rodney was just because of watching him in high school and even his limited game on Virginia Tech. And then obviously Kobi’s numbers, ”Willard said.

“So just that alone, adding these three guys was really the focus to help protect Julian and there.”

Miguel and Gillespie hit 42% outside the arch this season, while Rice has made 37% of his 3-Pointers. After placing 13 of 14 Big Ten schools in scoring, shooting and 3-point percentage last season, this team currently ranks fourth from 3-point reach and fifth in the total shooting and score.

Maryland needed this circumference that scored Wednesday against No. 17 Wisconsin, and hit 7-11 3s in the second half to beat Badgers 76-68.

“We got a lot of good looks in the first half, but we were just kind of, a little reinforced or not reinforced enough,” Willard said. “Selton hit a couple – I think SEL hit the first of half, and then he hit one when he was down six to cut it to three. Having the right guys to shoot them always helps. “

And sometimes the “real guy” is contagious. Deshawn Harris-Smith hits maybe 5-23 from the center this season, but one of these brands came in the second half and triggered the rally that put Terps ahead to stay.

Start five

Up top: Auburn remains # 1 on my ballot and generally, and Tigers ’87 -74 win over LSU on Wednesday gives Bruce Pearl’s team his best start (19-1) after 20 matches in the program history. The tigers also boast the National Player of the Year candidate Johni Broome (18 points and 11 rebounds per match) back from an ankle injury, and it looks like the 6-foot-10 front is close to full strength after having Located 26 points with 11 rebounds in Baton Rouge.

Duke is No. 2, but one wonders how much the blue devils will be held back by a soft ACC. Iowa State, Florida and Alabama end my top five. Greatest deviations? I have not -fixed Saint Mary’s 17. On my ballot, and I have No. 25 Uconn 18. Meanwhile, No. 18 Illinois did not make my ballot this week (21 -point loss at home will do it against you).

Hardest omissions: Maryland, Missouri, Texas Tech and Creighton. Small School Shout-Outs: VCU and Bradley.

Goes in: Georgetown (13-8, 4-6 Big East) has hit a bit of a mid-season slope to put it mildly. Tuesday against No. 15 St. John’s missed Hoya’s 20 of their first 23 shots and pulled with 30 in the first half on their way to a 66-41 loss, the team’s sixth in seven games.

“Every time you are in a stretch like this and you are a coach, or you are a leader is the last thing you have to do, guilt or index finger. You point out the things you’ve done well to get to a point of having an opportunity to succeed, ”said head coach Ed Cooley.

“You have to return to the basics, ok, clean up movies, inspire your guys, let them know it’s not the end of the world.”

What needs to be corrected is an attack that has not scored 70 points since December.

“We have to look at our violation, our choice of shots. We had six assists today – six. I think it’s the lowest we’ve had all year, ”Cooley said. “So the ball doesn’t move. It’s on us like the coaches we need to address it. “

Georgetown has a chance to get well over the next few weeks, with four straight matches against teams that are currently sports losing Big East Records.

Perimeter Play: George Mason (16-5, 7-1 Atlantic 10) matched his best start to the conference since coming to the A-10 by turning off a 58-53 overtime victory at Loyola Chicago. Senior Guard KD Johnson has been a overtime specialist in this team, where he netto 7 of his 8 points in the extra session against Ramblers while sent 7 of his 15 points against George Washington on January 18 after the end of the regulation.

The transfer from Auburn has given a nice infusion from the bench, which led the team in assists while ranking second in stealing. It is proof that sometimes the best transfers in the portal are not the flashest.

Mason has a couple of road games on Davidson and George Washington to begin February “Moving Month” while building on its strong start. And for those who are curious after the previous GMU team that started 7-1 in A-10? A fifth place 11-7 finish that saw a quarter-final exit in the conference tournament.

Who is open: George Mason is not the only local school that goes into the weekend at the top of his conference. American (13-9, 7-2 Patriot League) owns a six-match winning strip and halfway through league games has been the team to beat, which solidifies this status with an 81-77 win last weekend against four-time defense of regular seasonal master Colgate.

Matt Rogers was named Patriot League Player of the Week on Monday and then spoke 21 points with eight rebounds in the school’s 75-68 victory on Lafayette on Wednesday. AU leads Army at a game in the position and will face the Black Knights on Saturday at. 14.00 inside Bender Arena.

Last shot: The first day of February delivers a couple of conference showdowns in Commonwealth, starting with Virginia Tech (9-12, 4-6 ACC) visiting Virginia (10-11, 3-7) at. 16.00

For the first time since 2013, it seems that neither Hokies nor Cavaliers will be NCAA tournament tied. Both teams come from victories in Sunshine State. VT got 17 points and 13 rebounds from Tobi Lawal in his victory in Florida State, while Virginia’s Isaac McNEely scored 26 points in a triumph on Miami.

They are also the lowest and third lowest scoring teams in ACC, so don’t expect a work of art at John Paul Jones Arena.

Meanwhile, VCU (16-5, 6-2 Atlantic 10) hosts Richmond (7-14, 2-6) also at. 16.00. The spiders have lost six in a row and at the end of the A-10 rank in scoring, shooting and rebounding margins. Rams leads the conference in the turnover margin while ranking second in scoring and allowed points. They have also beaten Richmond the last six times they have met in the Siegel Center.

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