Maryland vs. Duke: Three things to watch
There’s certainly no love lost when No. 5 seed Duke and unseeded Maryland meet for the third time this season. The teams split the two previous meetings, but Maryland’s victory occurred in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament final. The reigning national champion Blue Devils (14-5) are making their fifth consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament semifinals. This is the first trip to the Final Four for the Terps (12-4) since 2006. Here are a few factors that could influence the outcome at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on Saturday.
1) Duke’s Wolf vs. Maryland’s B.Schmidt. Senior attackman Zach Howell leads the Blue Devils in points (58) and goals (42), but freshman attackman Jordan Wolf is the playmaker, leading the team in assists (20). Wolf can dodge, but has good enough field vision to spot teammates cutting to open spots and feed them for high-percentage shots. Wolf will likely get the attention of Terps senior defenseman Brett Schmidt, who leads the team in caused turnovers (22) and ranks third in ground balls (50). In Maryland’s 11-9 victory in the ACC tournament final on April 24, Schmidt limited Wolf to zero goals and a single assist.
2) Maryland’s Ryan Young vs. Duke’s defense. Terps senior attackman Grant Catalino is the sharpshooter, but Young is the quarterback of the offense. The senior attackman likes to find his teammates for goals, but he doesn’t hesitate to create his own chances. The Blue Devils have a capable defense, an athletic group that is long and knows how and when to apply a poke-check. In Duke’s 9-8 overtime win on March 5, Young did not register a single point. In Maryland’s win in the ACC tournament, Young finished with one goal and two assists. That’s not a coincidence.
3) Duke’s Costabile vs. Maryland’s Holmes. Costabile is dealing with an unspecified injury that limited him to one faceoff in the Blue Devils’ 7-5 victory over No. 4 seed Notre Dame on Sunday, but here’s guessing that the senior long-stick midfielder will have improved enough to take on Holmes. Costabile has won 52.4 percent of his draws (97-of-185) and has the strength to battle Holmes. Duke could also go with freshman Brendan Fowler (55.6 percent on 84-of-151), but he was just 1-of-7 against Holmes in the ACC tournament. If Holmes (62.5 percent on 198-of-317) can be as dominant as he was against Syracuse (11-of-14), he will give the Terps plenty of possessions and opportunities against Duke sophomore goalie Dan Wigrizer.
Categories: Maryland, Three things to watch
