Former coach Gary Williams retired in May, after more than two decades in College Park.
Walking into Comcast Center’s media workroom yesterday, Mark Turgeon looked up and offered a few choice words to start his press conference.
“What, do we have a big game or something?” the first-year Terrapins men’s basketball coach said jokingly, noting the packed row of cameras and microphones tilted his way. “What the hell is all this?”
Turgeon isn’t blind, and he’s certainly not deaf to what Terps fans have been telling him since he took the position in May: Tonight is the game everyone cares about. It’s his first game against archrival Duke in College Park, the first time he’ll experience Comcast Center at its loudest, his first chance to make a big impression on Terps fans.
And yet ironically, he also knows the biggest spotlight won’t be on him tonight. That honor is reserved for his predecessor Gary Williams, who manned the program for the previous two decades and delivered the program its only national title.
With a special presentation beginning about 20 minutes before the 9 p.m. tip, the Terps athletics department will honor the legend with the unveiling of Gary Williams Court.
“We all know how Gary got up for the Duke game,” Turgeon said, “so it’s an appropriate night for us to unveil his name on the floor.”
The university hosted a special dedication dinner on the floor of Comcast Center on Monday that brought out 350 high-end donors, alumni, former players and former assistants.
Even Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, North Carolina coach Roy Williams and Michigan State coach Tom Izzo made separate appearances on the video board to congratulate the former Terps coach on the honor.
The Comcast Center floor will feature two markings donning Williams’ signature in black and “Court” in red, one in front of the visitor’s bench and the other on the opposite side of the court. The Terps will also wear special Under Armour shoes with Williams’ signature tonight.
“It was great to have the opportunity to play for him,” forward James Padgett said, “and it’s great to play in the game that they’re honoring his name.”
“I’m thinking in my mind that we have to play for Coach Williams,” guard Sean Mosley said. “We don’t want to let him down on his big night.”
The festivities have certainly revved up a matchup that, for many, never needs any hyping. Still, the Terps (12-6, 2-2 ACC) are riding a two-game losing streak and have dropped nine of their past 10 games against the No. 8 Blue Devils (16-3, 4-1). Duke, meanwhile, is coming off its first home loss in 45 games.
“I don’t think there’s any question that Duke, in our fans’ minds, in our players’ minds, has been the rivalry game that we need to play well and be ready to play,” Turgeon said. “It will be our first game that’s sold out. And just from Day 1, getting out in the community, people talk about Duke.”
People also talked about Williams, who Turgeon said has been indispensable since he was hired in May. Tonight will mark only Williams’ second public appearance in Comcast Center since retiring last year, the other coming during Maryland Madness in October.
Williams has made regular television appearances on the Big Ten Network as an analyst and recently became the college basketball insider for ESPN 980. But he’s mostly stayed out of the spotlight in College Park, allowing Turgeon to cultivate his own program.
“This is Gary’s home,” Turgeon said. “My transition has been smooth because of the way that he’s handled it. He’s a special guy and a hell of a coach. I don’t think there’s any question that he’s on my side. You always worry about that when you take a job. But he’s gone above and beyond to let people know, people that really matter to our program, that he thinks I’m the right guy for this job, and that’s really helped.”
Williams will come out of the tunnel at Comcast Center, with all eyes fixated on him, for possibly the final time tonight. Williams might not be coaching anymore, his designer suits drenched in sweat, but the man charged with replacing him believes The House That Gary Built will get one more Williams trademark.
Said Turgeon: “I’m sure we’ll get a fist pump tomorrow night.”
TERPS NOTE: Turgeon said yesterday that center Alex Len has a sprained ankle but is expected to play for the Terps. He said the redshirt freshman is still sore after sustaining the injury in Saturday’s game against Temple.
ceckard@umdbk.com
