Kevin Willard says one guard has a real hunger," talks offensive issues, Marquette and more
"He just had a real hunger to go out and prove everybody wrong that was saying that he couldn't do things, and he's put a tremendous amount of hard work in and he's shooting the basketball really well for us."
So far, so good for the Maryland men's basketball team.
The Terps are 3-0 with three consecutive wins by at least 30 points each, the first time in program history that feat has been accomplished to start a season. While the schedule has not been a tough one, the Terps still hold a
strong standing in the national picture thus far.
After a few tune-ups to begin the season, Maryland has its first real test Friday night as No. 15 Marquette comes to town. (
Read more about the Golden Eagles here.) It will be Marquette's first road game and biggest test of the young season, though they have played a far tougher opponent than any of Maryland's in the early going in George Mason, the No. 82 team at KenPom.
Maryland head coach
Kevin Willard joined
"The Big Bad Morning Show" on 105.7 The Fan during the 9 a.m. hour Tuesday morning to talk about his team and discuss the start to the season.
Willard talked about a player with a "real hunger," the threats Marquette presents, whether the Terps can surprise people and much more.
ON IF HE’S HAVING FUN SO FAR
"Yeah. I mean, I really like this – this group, from a defensive intensity standpoint, has been really fun to coach because we've been able to do a lot of different things on the defensive end. And every guy that comes in has really kind of picked up our defensive intensity, so we're scoring off turnovers, which we really struggled with last year, and everyone's just given great effort."
https://247sports.com/college/maryl...en-rodney-rice-braden-pierce-juju-239685973/#
ON IF THIS TEAM CAN SURPRISE PEOPLE
"Yeah, I think so. I mean, I still think we're struggling a little bit offensively. I'm playing so many guys right now that I think a lot of guys are having trouble getting into a rhythm offensively. But, with Derik and JuJu out there down low, it gives us two guys that can – when you're struggling to score – that can really get a basket. And I think the addition of
Rodney Rice and
Ja'Kobi Gillespie is really, when they're both in the back court together, give us two guys that can create offense for other guys. So as these guys try to figure each other out still a little bit, try to figure out the system, I think they're going to continue to improve."
ON MARQUETTE
"Yeah, I mean, Marquette is going to be a big challenge. I think they return one of the most dynamic scorers in college basketball in
Kam Jones, he's averaging 23 points a game in three games. And you know Shaka's teams, from a defensive standpoint, they've been elite so far, top five in the defense. So for us, figuring out the offensive end, continue to play on the defensive end, and doing a [good] job on Kam Jones is going to be a big test."
ON RODNEY RICE
"Yeah, I mean, Rodney was one guy that when we went to the portal, we knew we needed some guys that could really shoot the basketball. But what I really liked about Rodney's game was his attitude. He had taken a year off from basketball because of an injury. He really had a desire to come back and show everybody what type of basketball player he can be.
CONT. ON RICE
"He just had a real hunger to go out and prove everybody wrong that was saying that he couldn't do things, and he's put a tremendous amount of hard work in and he's shooting the basketball really well for us."
On his three-point shooting: "… Obviously, he's shooting 41% from three, which last year would have led us by about 20 percentage points. So just having a guy out there that can really stretch the floor has helped us tremendously."
ON HOW DEEP HE THINKS THE TEAM WILL BE BY CONFERENCE PLAY
"No, I mean, I'm trying, hopefully get it figured out by Friday. I definitely, I'm really comfortable going nine deep right now. I think nine guys coming in, they're all a little bit different. They all kind of pick us up a different way. But we've been playing 11, 12, guys, and everyone that's gone out there has done good things. So I think that's more than anything what I like about this roster is we're not stuck with just one style, way to play. We can go a little bit smaller, which we've done so far early on, or obviously we can go big with Derik and Ju. So it gives us different combinations that we can throw at teams."
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ON THE TEAM HAVING MORE OF A KILLER INSTINCT THIS YEAR
"Yeah, I do think – obviously we're older. Last year, we were a little bit younger, especially coming off the bench, which I think hurt us a little bit just because freshmen don't, haven't been through as many games as older guys. So we have guys like
Selton Miguel, who fifth-year senior, Ja'Kobi is a junior.
CONT.
"So everyone's a little bit older. Everyone's been through it, understands what you have to do to win games. And when you get experienced guys, even though they're from all different schools, I think they understand when a game gets tight or when they're on a run, they understand what to do much more than what a freshman does."
ON DERIK QUEEN, HOW TOUGH IT IS FOR FRESHMEN IN MAJOR COLLEGE BASKETBALL
"It's what's great about Derik. He has an unbelievable support system. His mother is one of the most phenomenal people I've ever met. Everyone around him, and he has a very tight, close-knit circle. Has really helped him stay grounded. And I think what's great about Derik is he's very focused on where he wants to get to. So he's kind of had hype his whole career, and I think he has a good support system around them that kind of understands how to navigate this."
ON BRADEN PIERCE
"Yeah, Braden redshirted last year. And halfway through the year last year, we were wishing he didn't redshirt just because he was starting to really kind of develop into the player we thought he can. Braden's got great soft touch, really good hands. Was a phenomenal pitcher, believe it or not, was going to be a pitcher and then threw his arm out. And since being seven-foot he decided to go play basketball, but was really a good pitcher. So he's a guy that's really not a project. He's going to get some minutes this year. We're excited about Braden for the future."
