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"Energy" reason behind Palsson starting over Mosley

Maryland used its fifth starting lineup in nine games today, and inevitably the question came up afterward about what prompted three guys coming in (Adrian Bowie, Terrell Stoglin and Hauk Palsson) and three guys heading out (Cliff Tucker, Pe'Shon Howard and Sean Mosley) today.

Stoglin had served his punishment for being late to a team function. Tucker's start was matchup-based on Thursday against Virginia Tech.

And as for the Palsson/Mosley swap?

"I just thought Hauk would give us energy at the start of a game," coach Gary Williams said. "We had 36 hours from the end of the Virginia Tech game to try to figure out a way to get things fired up a little bit. I thought Hauk did a good job coming in when he did [with] the way he started the game and got us flying."

Palsson had three points and two rebounds in 12 minutes.

Mosley had nine points, three rebounds and three assists in 20 minutes, his fourth-lowest minutes total of the season (behind the Maine, Temple and Villanova games).

And chances are very, very good this isn't the last postgame entry this season about a reshuffled lineup.

Palsson draws start over Mosley against Clemson

Tip time is less than 10 minutes away at Comcast Center, and Maryland has another lineup surprise.

Maybe surprise isn't the right word. At this point, it's clear the Terrapins are going to tinker with their lineup for nearly the entire season.

Freshman Hauk Palsson will make his first career start, getting the nod in place of junior Sean Mosley. It's the first time Mosley will come off the bench this season.

Terrell Stoglin also returns to the starting lineup in place of Pe'Shon Howard.

It's Maryland's fifth starting lineup in the last nine games, and Palsson becomes the eighth player to draw a start for the Terrapins this season.

This probably has a bit to do with performance and a bit to do with Clemson starting 6-foot-6, 220-pound forward Bryan Narcisse in place of the injured Tanner Smith. In any case, it's one question that will surely be asked of Gary Williams after the game.

Maryland plus-minus: Maine

Maryland upended Maine 89-59 on Sunday.

It outscored the Black Bears by 29 when senior guard Adrian Bowie was on the floor.

Indeed, the Terrapins' third victory had a lot to do with Bowie playing considerably better than his first two games. But his production isn't the most curious nugget lodged inside today's plus-minus chart:

Player	MAINE	SEASON	Per min.
1-Bowie	+29	+34	0.51
10-Weijs	+11	+7	0.41
11-Parker	+5	+9	0.50
12-Stoglin	+14	+17	0.43
13-Palsson	+16	+29	0.91
14-Mosley	+8	+24	0.32
15-Levent	-1	-4	-0.80
20-Williams	+17	+56	0.58
21-Howard	+8	+43	0.66
24-Tucker	+22	+48	0.59
33-Gregory	+11	+24	0.30
35-Padgett	+10	+13	0.42
42-Pankey	DNP	0	0.00

OK, there's plenty of curiosities here. But the one that stands out the most is forward Haukur Palsson's +29 figure in 32 total minutes.

The freshman had eight points against Maine, and also doubled his minutes total for the season (he had 16 against the Black Bears). Overall, he is not the most statistically imposing player, but there's a sense that comes from watching Maryland that the Terps play well when he's on the floor.

This just simply backs it up.