Team of the Week: Maryland Terrapins
Maryland may as well have been playing a tournament game on Saturday when they hosted No. 2 Duke. After putting together a non-conference schedule that featured Kentucky and ... well ... nothing else, the Terps had dug themselves a massive hole heading into ACC play. With a home win over NC State the only relevant victory on their NCAA tournament resume, Duke was the last chance for the Terps to pick up a marquee victory.
And they got it.
Now, this doesn’t ensure Maryland’s ticket to the dance. They still need to win at least five of their last six regular season games. They have to beat both North Carolina and Virginia. There is still a lot of work that needs to be done, but beating Duke gives them a chance to do that. Had they lost, Maryland could have conceivably won 11 ACC games and missed out on the NCAA tournament.
Teams deserving a shout out:
Georgetown: Believe it or not, the team that could barely crack 40 points back in December and that lost by 28 points at home to Pitt in early January is now tied for the lead in the Big East after beating Marquette at home and winning at Cincinnati. The Hoyas get two games against Syracuse in their final six games. The Big East title is within their reach.
Weber State: The Wildcats had a big week. Not only did they go 3-0 in the Big Sky and move to within a game of first place, they did so by beating previously-undefeated Montana 87-63 on Thursday night. The Grizzlies had owned WSU of late, and while it may not be enough to get them the league’s regular season title, having the confidence that they can actually beat Montana if important.
Colorado State: The Rams made their way one step closer to winning the Mountain West as they knocked off San Diego State on Wednesday night, following that up by surviving a 45 point performance by Michael Lyons in a win at Air Force. CSU has their biggest week of the season coming up, as they visit UNLV and host New Mexico.
Memphis: The Tigers do the same thing every season -- they struggle through the non-conference portion of their schedule and then become a completely different team in Conference USA play. This week, the Tigers blew out Central Florida at home and then went into Huntington, WV, and knocked off Marshall by a dozen.
Iowa: The Hawkeyes won at Penn State and beat Minnesota at home, extending their winning streak to three games and putting themselves into a position where they can make a run at an at-large bid. The problem? The Hawkeyes only have two potential good wins left on their schedule. They’ll like need to win four of their last five games -- including No. 1 Indiana at home -- if they truly want to go dancing.
They were good, too: Cal, Gonzaga, Illinois, Providence
You can find Rob on twitter @RobDauster.
