Maryland, Stony Brook Meet Friday Night
Dec. 20, 2012
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -
After taking an eight-day break for final exams, Maryland returns to action for its final game before Christmas break when it takes on Stony Brook Friday night. The teams have met just once in history, a 107-59 Maryland victory on Dec. 6, 2000.
Alex Len recorded his third double-double of the year with 14 points and 10 rebounds vs. Monmouth, and continues to pace the Terps in scoring (13.9 ppg), rebounding (8.8 rpg) and blocks (2.6 bpg). His five blocks vs. Monmouth were a career high and the most by a Terp since Jordan Williams had six against Virginia on 3/5/2011.
Maryland's depth has been an asset all season, as 10 players are averaging double-figure minutes and eight are averaging at least 5.4 points per game. In each of the past three games, Maryland was able to clear its bench, with all 14 eligible players seeing action.
On a Streak
Field-Goal Percentage Defense
At least eight players have scored in nine of Maryland's 10 games this year. The exception is vs. George Mason, when just seven players scored.
Dominating the Paint
Maryland has enjoyed an advantage in points in the paint throughout the year. The Terps have outscored the opponent in nine of 10 games, with the exception being the Morehead State game when each team had 28. On average, Maryland is scoring 39.6 points in the paint while holding its opponent to 21.4 points.
Maryland's bench has been an asset all season, as the Terps' non-starters have outscored the opponents non-starters in eight of 10 games (exceptions are Kentucky & George Mason).
On the year, Maryland's bench has a 271-122 advantage over the opponent. The biggest advantage Maryland has had this season was against UMES on Dec. 5 (55-7).
Seth Allen (6.1 ppg), Shaquille Cleare (5.9 ppg), Logan Aronhalt (5.9 ppg) and Charles Mitchell (5.4 ppg) have been the biggest contributors.
Aronhalt is the long-range specialist. He hit all four of his 3-point attempts vs. Georgia Southern and made 3 of 5 at Northwestern. Against UMES, Aronhalt scored a season-high 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting, including 5-of-7 from 3-point range. On the year, he has hit 18 of 31 from 3-point range (.581).
After averaging 6.0 points and 5.4 rebounds per game as a freshman, Alex Len has developed into Maryland's most consistent scoring threat as a sophomore. Len is averaging 13.9 points per game, which ranks first in the ACC among centers and 12th overall. His 8.8 rebounds per game rank sixth. Len also leads the league with 2.6 blocks per game. He has three double-doubles this season: against Kentucky (23 & 12), Northwestern (13 & 13) and Monmouth (14 & 10).
More on Assists
Maryland ranks fourth nationally with 18.8 assists per game behind Pittsburgh (20.1), North Carolina (19.3) and Notre Dame (19.0).
Pe'Shon Howard, who ranks second in the ACC with 6.0 assists per game, would be in some rare company if he can average 6.0 assists per game this season. In the past 25 years, just three players have averaged more than 6.0 assists per game at Maryland: Terrell Stokes in 1998-99, Steve Blake from 1999-2003, and Greivis Vasquez in 2007-08 and 2009-10.
Maryland's 28 assists against LIU Brooklyn were nine more than the team's season-high of 19 last year. In fact, the last time a Maryland team had more assists in a game was in the 2002-03 season, when the Terps had 29 on two occasions. The Terps also had 28 assists in a game on 2/9/11 vs. Longwood and 12/31/05 vs. VMI. The school record for assists in a game is 37.
Howard's 13 assists vs. LIU Brooklyn are tied for the fourth-most in a single game by a Terp. The only better performances are: Greivis Vasquez (2008) and Terrell Stokes (1998) with 15; and Steve Blake (2002) and Terrell Stokes (1996) with 14.
Force on the Boards
Maryland leads the Atlantic Coast Conference and ranks second nationally in rebounding margin at plus-15.2 per game. The only team in the nation with a better margin is Colorado State (plus-16.1).
The Terps have built advantages on the boards in all 10 games this season. Against Northwestern, Maryland built a 47-19 advantage on the boards, the largest margin this season.
Alex Len and Charles Mitchell are the biggest factors in that; Len averages 8.8 rpg and Mitchell averages 6.5. Len ranks sixth in the conference and Mitchell ranks 14th, including second among freshmen. There are five Terps averaging at least 4.0 rebounds per game (also Dez Wells, James Padgett and Nick Faust).
Len leads the conference with 3.3 offensive rebounds per game, and the Terps are averaging 14.7 offensive rebounds per game as a team, second in the league behind North Carolina (16.3).
Mitchell made an impressive debut by grabbing 10 rebounds in his first career game, against No. 3 Kentucky. That's the most rebounds by a Maryland freshman in his debut since Buck Williams had 13 against Bucknell in 1978. Williams went on to lead the ACC in rebounding that year (10.8 pg) en route to capturing ACC Rookie of the Year honors.
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