Terps Headed Back to NCAA Tournament

COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) -- Dave Neal didn't know whether to cheer or cry.

The only senior on Maryland's basketball team had just learned the Terrapins would be going to the NCAA tournament, and a wave of emotion enveloped him.

"It's a dream come true. I almost started crying when I saw our name," Neal said Sunday night, moments after the Terrapins were named the No. 10 seed in the West Region.

Despite losing by 41 points at Duke, falling at home to Morgan State and faltering miserably against woeful Virginia, the resilient Terrapins are headed to the Big Dance for the second time in three seasons.

Maryland (20-13) will open tournament play Thursday in Kansas City, Mo. against California of the Pac-10.

As soon as the bracket was posted on television, the players roared their approval inside the basement of the Comcast Center. Maryland was no shoo-in, but wins over North Carolina State and Wake Forest in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament evidently pushed the team over the top.

"We've had a tough year; the coaches and players faced a lot of criticism," guard Eric Hayes said. "So this is the ultimate reward for us."

The victory over Wake Forest was Maryland's third this season over a team ranked in the Top 10. The Terrapins also defeated North Carolina and Michigan State.

This is far from coach Gary Williams' best team at Maryland, but the Terps won 20 games with only one upperclassman and very little height in the front court. Yet, after a 2-4 stretch in late January, it appeared the Terrapins might miss the NCAA tournament for the fourth time in five years.

That's when the media and the fans began to denounce Williams and his scrappy band of players.

"That was my motivation. Every time I woke up, I knew people were talking about us and that we weren't going to make it," guard Greivis Vasquez said. "Now they can answer their own questions. We made it. Now what are they going to say about us? Just be quiet and don't say anything else."

It would have been easy for Williams to talk about vindication after taking this overachieving team to the NCAA tournament. Instead, he directed the credit to his players and lauded their accomplishment.

"It was a great feeling for me, but my feelings were for the players because of their work this year," Williams said. "I didn't want them not to get rewarded for what they did."

Williams won the 2001 national championship at his alma mater and is now in his 20th season at Maryland. Yet there came a time this season when athletic director Debbie Yow felt compelled to make it clear that Williams' job was not in jeopardy.

Asked if the tournament berth served to silence his critics, Williams replied, "That's not what this is about. This is about the Maryland basketball team and getting to the NCAA tournament. ... This isn't about redemption. We've been to the NCAA tournament two of the last three years. What we've done this decade probably has been matched only by a few teams. We have a great basketball program."

But what about this year? Was Williams convinced the Terrapins did enough to get into the NCAA tournament?

"I knew there several good teams that weren't going to make it, so even though most of my friends told me we were in, you never assume anything until you're there," he said. "And we probably weren't there with about two or three weeks left in the season."

It all turned out well, however, and now the Terrapins couldn't be happier.

"Our hard work is paying off right now," forward Landon Milbourne said. "It's been an up and down season, but at this point, it's all worth it. This is a great feeling."

Especially after missing out last year. Even though the Terrapins went 8-8 in the ACC and beat then-No. 1 North Carolina in 2007-08, they ended up going to the NIT.

The last thing they wanted was a repeat performance.

"The NIT is not where you want to be," Hayes said, "so getting back this year is great for us."