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Maryland returns
to the court after a nine-day break for exams as it hosts North Carolina-Greensboro
at the Comcast Center.
The 24th-ranked Terrapins (6-2) will be looking for their third straight win
in their final tuneup before opening Atlantic Coast Conference play against
Florida State on Sunday.
Maryland will be playing for the first time since a 96-72 win over Pepperdine on Dec. 14 as the Terps had their highest point total of the season, and most since scoring 108 against Hampton on Jan. 8.
John Gilchrist scored a career-high 24 points and freshman D.J. Strawberry added a season-high 17 on 7-for-8 shooting as Maryland followed up its upset of then-top ranked Florida earlier in the week.
The Terps shot
54.3 percent from the field (38-for-70) against Pepperdine, including 67.7 percent
(21-for-31) in the second half.
``You could tell from early on that a lot of us were still thinking about the
last game,'' Gilchrist said. ``We had to put the Florida win behind us and move
on. That's what it's all about, winning and keeping the season rolling.
``We have progressed since the first game and each game is a building block. Each game, each practice, guys are getting better and more confident.''
In the last two games, Maryland shot 17-of-33 on 3-pointers (51.5 percent) -- including 10-of-16 against Pepperdine -- after going 25-for-92 (27.2 percent) from long range in the first six games.
The Terps' uptempo style has forced opponents into 18.2 turnovers per game and 38.0 percent shooting from the field.
Jamar Smith has seven double-doubles and leads the Terps with averages of 16.4 points and 11.1 rebounds. Nik Caner-Medley adds 14.0 points and 6.5 rebounds.
The Terrapins are 96-1 at home against nonconference opponents since Dec. 30, 1989.
Greensboro (4-5) has lost three straight and will be facing its second consecutive ranked opponent. The Spartans played perhaps their best game of the season in a 106-98 loss at No. 10 Missouri on Sunday.
Jay Joseph and Ronnie Burrell scored 22 points apiece for Greensboro, which shot 57 percent from the field, but let the Tigers shoot 65 percent and top 100 points for the first time in more than two years.
Joseph leads Greensboro with a team-high 18.7 points per game, and has connected on 28 3-pointers. He has hit at least one 3-pointer in 41 consecutive games.
Maryland won the only previous meeting with Greensboro, 84-55 at home on Feb. 25, 1992.