Tonight in University Hall, Pete Gillen and the Cavaliers will finish the first half of the round-robin ACC schedule against Maryland. Virginia is coming off a tough two-game road trip to Tobacco Road against North Carolina and Wake Forest. Virginia will try to bounce back at 9 p.m. against the floundering Terrapins, who are only 1-4 in their last five games.
Sophomore forward Derrick Byars will likely play an important role in tonight's game, as he broke out of a recent slump in an otherwise disappointing showing for Virginia against the Demon Deacons. After averaging an abysmal one point in the previous five ACC games, Byars had 18 points against Wake, going 6-11 from the field.
"I never lost my confidence," Byars said. "I just wanted to go out there and play as hard as I could."
Byars more than tripled his playing time between the North Carolina and Wake games, going from eight to 27 minutes. His increased presence on defense will be instrumental if Virginia is to contain sophomore forward Nik Caner-Medley, who is tied for the Maryland team lead with 14.2 points per game. Maryland as a whole is young but gifted, with Caner-Medley's classmates John Gilchrist and Chris McCray handling backcourt duties. Gilchrist is tied with Caner-Medley in scoring, and McCray leads Maryland with 29 steals.
With this talented trio leading the way, Virginia will have trouble if they repeat the slow start that plagued the squad against the Deacons.
Wake Forest "just came out and just knocked us, like a fight," Gillen said. "They knocked us on our back in the first five, ten, thirty seconds and we couldn't recover."
If Todd Billet improves his offensive production, the Cavaliers could experience a quicker start against Maryland. The senior guard, despite 32 minutes of play, registered only 4 points and 3 assists. Without Billet's spark, the Virginia attack tends to falter.
"Todd can be cut down a little bit," Gillen said. "They did a good job on him. Give them credit for that."
Even if Billet's numbers improve, the senior will still likely need more help from his younger counterparts to initiate a swift start from tip-off.
One of those players that has recently increased his contributions for the Cavaliers is freshman forward Jason Cain. Cain has received limited playing time off the bench throughout the season, but scored 11 points in just 15 minutes of action against Wake Forest.
"I think the way they are bringing me along is the easiest way, so it's more of a natural adjustment to playing in college," Cain said.
The first three minutes, as in any ACC tilt, should play a crucial part in determining the game's result. Maryland goes about seven or eight players deep into their bench, but relies mostly on the aforementioned sophomore trio and senior center Jamar Smith for the bulk of their offense. After those four, the Terrapins have little instant offense coming off the bench, which is why the Cavaliers depth, which produced 31 points against Wake Forest, could play a large part in the outcome tonight.
The game tonight has developed into a toss-up matchup in the last few years, as Virginia has won four of the last seven meetings, including a two game sweep last year. Since the Cavaliers have lost only once at home this year, tonight's game could prove another exciting chapter in the rivalry's 85-year history.
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