Maryland Terrapins In The NBA Playoffs: Two Games In
Apr 21, 2013; San Antonio, TX, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Steve Blake (5) saves the ball from going out of bounds during game one of the first round of the 2013 NBA Playoffs against the San Antonio Spurs at AT
Since we’re now two game into the NBA playoffs I figured it was time to do a synopsis of the Terrapins play thus far, especially since both teams are in danger of being swept. The Celtics and the Lakers, two storied franchises, are being summarily waxed by their opponents, the Knicks and the Spurs. But how are the Terrapins on their respective teams doing? Let’s find out:
Chris Wilcox, Boston Celtics
Game One: Spirited, cheerful, supports teammates effectively, Celtics green really brings out his eyes. That would be the scouting report on Chris Wilcox if you were watching the first game of the series, because he didn’t play a minute. Wilcox got the dreaded DNP – coaches decision during the first game of the playoffs, which disappointed Terps fans from all over (my household).
It’s not because he isn’t very good, but it’s more that the Knicks occasionally run out a small ball lineup that Wilcox can’t play in. Still, the Celtics will eventually have to slow things down even more to stymie the Knicks into a halfcourt set. That’s when Wilcox will strike.
Game Two: Chris Wilcox got in the game!
…for six minutes. In typical Wilcoxian fashion he pulled down two rebounds for the Celtics, but offered little else during the game. Little else, unless that is you want to count the negative eight plus/minus he racked up in record time. Do I have confidence that Wilcox will enter game three? Yup. It still puzzles me why he isn’t matched up more against Kenyon Martin, who has been killing the Celtics on the boards. Wilcox tends to play admirable defense and he’s still mobile, so hopefully Doc Rivers throws him a bone.
The best thing for the Terps fans is for the Celtics to keep losing, because then they’ll get desperate and throw Wilcox out there just to try something different. So let’s go Knicks!
Steve Blake, Los Angeles Lakers
Game One: On the opposite end of the spectrum in more ways than one, Blake has been logging a ton of minutes for the Lakers. Blake played almost the entirety of game one against the Spurs, and even though the Lakers lost, he had a pretty decent all-around performance. 12 points, a pair of triples, three assists, four steals, and two blocks? That’s a pretty decent stat sheet for someone who just started logging a ton of minutes last month.
Unfortunately Steve Blake couldn’t guard a traffic cone, let alone the guards on the Spurs. He’s getting thrashed on the defensive end, where the Spurs can kind of penetrate at will against the creaky bones of Nash and Blake. It’s actually mostly Steve Nash, who looks like a shade of himself on defense (which was already terrible).
Still, White Mamba is making Terps proud with his performance, and he’s not the main reason they are losing by a long shot.
Game Two: Steve followed up his all-around performance last game with a slightly more effective one in game two. Blake put up 16 points, connected on 3-of-7 three point attempts, and somehow pulled down six rebounds. Blake also has three blocks over two game, which is amazing because Steve Blake is Steve Blake. His minutes went down (he only played 36, but he also got hurt) but you can’t argue that he is playing that terribly.
Except for that horrible turnover Blake had, which he was relentlessly dogged on Twitter for. You can watch that here if you want.
EDIT: Steve Blake proceeded to go out with a hamstring injury after game two and is unlikely to play….so our hopes hinge almost entirely on Chris Wilcox now. Thanks, D’Antoni for upping a player’s minutes so drastically.
——————-
Be sure to catch your Terps when they next play if you haven’t already.
Game Three: Knicks at Celtics, Spurs at Lakers
Friday, April 26th at 8 PM, 10:30 PM
Game Four: Knicks at Celtics, Spurs at Lakers
Sunday, April 28th at 1 PM, 7:00 PM
(All Eastern Time)