For red-hot Maryland basketball, beating Michigan State "would put us on the map even more"
Kevin Willard hasn't talked with his team about the Big Ten standings, but that hasn't stopped players from discussing the Terps positioning in the conference. The "Crab Five" and company are aware of the conference implications of the remaining four games.
Kevin Willard hasn't talked with his team about the Big Ten standings, but that hasn't stopped players from discussing the Terps positioning in the conference. The "Crab Five" and company are aware of the conference implications of the remaining four games.
Maryland is in a third-place tie with Wisconsin and is one game above Purdue and UCLA. A win against Michigan State could launch the Terps into potentially competing for a share of the conference championship.
"What I love most about coaching this team is that I do think that they have a sense of awareness of where they are and what's going on within the league," Willard said.
Senior forward Julian Reese mentioned the implications of Wednesday's game, as well. Reese said it's a big game for both teams and with a sell-out Xfinity Center crowd, it's a massive opportunity for the Terps (21-6 overall, 11-5 Big Ten).
"I feel like this would be a big statement win for us, and just would put us on the map even more," Reese said. "It's a really important game for both squads."
Willard, Reese and Ja'Kobi Gillespie previewed Wednesday's contest against the Spartans, their thoughts on the Crab Five nickname and how roster construction for next season has already started on Tuesday.
What's challenging about Michigan State:
Willard: "It's rebounding, transition defense and not turning the basketball over, probably in that order, against Michigan State. I think their pick and roll defenses is really, really good. Their Bigs do a great job hedging, their guards work to get over screens."
So, I think they really take away some of your pick and roll actions that a lot of people use to get single tags, double tags, and I think they just do a really good job."
Reese: "Definitely intensity. First and foremost, we got to match their intensity and their physicality and physical team, you know, just, just bringing that energy. I never really played against them when they played with low energy."
If Willard will use a zone against a poor shooting team (Spartans shooting 32.7% from three in Big Ten play):
Willard: "They're actually a much better shooting team, if you look at their past nine games and where they started the season, and I really think the difference is, once they move Holloman to the bench, they've actually been shooting the ball above average for conference play. I think they're a better shooting team, and people just look at their stats and say, like, this is what they're shooting.
"They've really improved. I think this is by far the difference between them and December and them and now it is night and day. So to look at the shooting percentages back in December, early in the season, where they struggled to know, where they're I think they're shooting a basketball with much more confidence, I think it is a major difference."
On roster construction last year vs. next year
Willard: "I knew we had Derik, and after I talked to Julian, after we lost in the Big 10 tournament, and he told me he was coming back, I knew I had those two. That's all I knew I had. So, I had my starting, power forward, my starting center. I knew what I had with Julian, I kind of knew what I had with Derik."
"So you flip your switch, it's almost happened already, like, I'm a GM right now. You're really looking at even for next year. I kind of know what I have. And so now you're looking at all right, how do I build off that going in and do the same thing." So, we had, I thought, the best frontcourt, and so I needed to have guys that could shoot the basketball. It was non-negotiable. If you could not shoot the basketball, we were not bringing you in off the portal. And we had a couple guys, some really good players, that wanted to come here, but it just didn't fit."
The Crab Five nickname:
Willard: "I'll be honest, it took me a little while to get it, and then I realized I was, you know, Maryland and crabs and all that. So, yeah, I thought I kind of was like, 'I thought we played pretty fast. We're eighth in tempo, I didn't think we played slow.'
"And then it took me a while, but I think it's great. I think the fans have been great with it. And I think it's well deserved that they're a fun group to watch, and I think they've been really enjoyable all year."
Reese: "We love the name. We love the notoriety wherever we're given. But I feel like our team is like, more than our first five, and we got a lot of guys that can impact the game in many ways."
Why Willard shows his team KenPom standings
Willard: "I think the biggest difference is you, now with the transfer portal you have guys coming from leagues that conference games didn't matter. Where the only thing that mattered were three games in March. And for me this year, showing them KenPom, getting them to understand the NET, margin of victory, who you're playing, when you're playing, where you're playing, I think changed this team's mentality a little bit."
"Instead of just going into every game to try to win, understanding the importance of every game, and when you're at some different conferences, you can, you cannot play well in January and February. It doesn't really matter. It matters in this conference. It matters at this level."
His biggest worry
Willard: " We haven't been able to practice that much because we're down technically almost five scholarship guys. Maybe my biggest worry is that we just haven't been able to practice quite as much as I'd like to. But as far as where we are, I like where we are."
