It was a day that started by honoring the Terrapin men’s basketball team’s three seniors.
But after 40 minutes of action Saturday, it ended as just the latest blow to the class’ preseason goals and expectations.
Following a pregame ceremony that celebrated the careers of guards Adrian Bowie and Cliff Tucker and forward Dino Gregory to raucous cheers from an announced crowd of 17,459, the Terps came out flat against Virginia in an eventual 74-60 loss.
“They were hotter today. They made a lot of tough shots,” guard Pe’Shon Howard said. “We had moments where we did well, but we just didn’t put it together for a full 40 minutes.”
A back-and-forth first half ended with a four-point lead for the Cavaliers, who held the lead for the final 26-plus minutes against the Terps (18-13, 7-9 ACC).
Paced by center Assane Sene (15 points) and guards Mustapha Farrakhan (19 points) and Sammy Zeglinski (25 points), Virginia (16-14, 7-9) used multiple second-half runs to stifle any hopes of a Terp victory. After their hosts pulled within five points late, the Cavaliers ended the game with a punctuating 9-0 run.
Zeglinski was particularly impressive for the Cavaliers, shooting 63 percent from the field and hitting six of seven attempts from 3-point range. The junior guard’s 25 points were a career high.
“He’s a very experienced guard, and we couldn’t stop him,” coach Gary Williams said. “Basketball’s that game sometimes where one guy can do that to you. We tried different people on him, but he did a very good job for Virginia.”
As Zeglinski caught fire, the Terps struggled to find the basket. The team shot 45 percent from the field and hit a meager two of nine from behind the arc.
“Virginia played good defense, but we weren’t real sharp with what we were trying to do,” Williams said. “That’s the difference in the game.”
Forward Jordan Williams led the Terps with 17 points, but aside from Gregory — who continued his impressive final season with a 15-point, three-rebound performance — the Terps’ seniors were again peripheral figures in the game’s action. Bowie and Tucker scored just five points apiece.
Saturday’s contest was the first time the Terps’ three seniors had started together since Dec. 12. And given the marked improvement of freshman guards Howard and Terrell Stoglin, in all likelihood, it also marked the last time.
“We’re not having the type of season we expected,” Bowie said Friday in advance of Saturday’s game. “But we’ve got to take what we’re given and keep working hard.”
Bowie, Gregory and Tucker were not made available to the media following the Terps’ 14-point loss.
With the bitter finish to their regular season, the Terps head into this week’s ACC Tournament on a three-game losing streak featuring double-figure defeats in each.
“We’re disappointed,” Jordan Williams said. “When you lose, you have a disappointing feeling, and when you keep losing, you get even more disappointed. … It’s just tough.”
The Terps last lost their final three games heading into the ACC Tournament in 2005. That year, the team finished the regular season with a 7-9 conference record, lost in the first round of the ACC Tournament and earned an invitation to the NIT.
With their 14-point loss to Virginia on Saturday, this year’s Terps also finished the regular season with a sub-.500 conference record and will need to win the ACC Tournament if they want to hear their name called on Selection Sunday.
That grim reality is something Gary Williams already has come to terms with.
“Win four,” the 22nd-year coach said when asked what his team has to do to earn a berth in the NCAA Tournament. “I think [that’s] where we are right now, realistically.”
jengelke@umdbk.com
