SPOKANE, Wash. --- A subplot of intrigue and inanity --- effectively, the sort of thing you'd expect from an NCAA-sanctioned event --- will find a bit of resolution that might thrill Maryland fans and disappoint those watching tomorrow's second round games in glorious HD.
The Terrapins will trot out their alternate home jerseys for their second round NCAA tournament meeting with Michigan State.
"We will be in gold tomorrow," Maryland senior associate athletic director Randy Eaton said.
How the Terps (24-8) got to that point is another matter.
The gold jerseys, a retro look that evokes the days of Len Bias, Adrian Branch and others, have become a favorite of many fans since their reintroduction two seasons ago.
More importantly, players have become quite fond of them. The gold duds were a de facto official home uniform for conference games, and Maryland went 8-0 in them this season.
After going one-and-done in the ACC tournament in the traditional white uniforms, Maryland wanted to wear gold in its first round game against Houston.
The NCAA, however, had other ideas. Maryland's request was denied under the argument red was too close to yellow on the color wheel and thus could confuse color blind viewers.
Strangely enough, yellow is next to green --- the hue Michigan State is expected to wear tomorrow --- on the color wheel.
But in a meeting today, tournament and Maryland officials concurred the Terps will use their alternate uniform.
"The guy looked at us and said 'Maryland, you'll be wearing gold,'" Eaton said. "I said 'Correct.' That was it."
News of the decision had trickled into the Maryland locker room before practice. Some Terps played coy, while others acknowledged some excitement about using a color scheme that Maryland has gone 13-2 with since the golden reintroduction.
None of those games, however, occurred outside of College Park.
"It's definitely cool because when we wear those, we feel like we're home," freshman forward Jordan Williams said. "We feel like we're in the Comcast Center with 18,000 loud. It's definitely a good feeling."
Clearly, a jersey isn't going to win a game. But one thing is for sure: If the Terps advance to the second weekend of the tournament, they'll do it in style.
"We had talked about the other day, but since they were wearing red, it wasn't happening," sophomore guard Sean Mosley said. "I think we'll probably bring the gold jerseys out. It's going to feel great, because that's what we wore when we were at home, and that's what everybody on the team wanted --- to wear the gold jerseys. It's not going to change anything. It's a jersey. We just have to come out and play our game."
Can somebody make sure the white jerseys never see the light again?
Posted by: Vinny V | 03/20/2010 at 09:45 PM