Ping: Maryland Basketball Fans (C. 97/98)

[Groundhog]

Any Terps fans remember Rodney Elliot, who was third team All-ACC in his senior year for Maryland? He's just signed with the Sydney Kings in our Australian "professional" league and I'm wondering what kind of player we've got.

He was signed as a replacement for another former ACC import Bryant Matthews out of Virginia Tech who, just weeks before the season starts, was charged with raping a Canadian tourist over here in Sydney...

[Logan]

I barely remember him. A google image search reminded me of what he looks like. Scary.

Bryant Matthews was charged with rape? That asshole destroyed Rutgers in a late season game a couple years ago. Knocked them right off the NCAA bubble. Nice to see him get what he deserves.

[Groundhog]

Bryant Matthews was charged with rape? That asshole destroyed Rutgers in a late season game a couple years ago. Knocked them right off the NCAA bubble. Nice to see him get what he deserves.

Yup, it was front page news over here, which is probably a first for our pro league. He was immediately dumped from the team, and awaits court next month.

Matthews played over here the season before last and picked up the nickname DoG (Delay of Game) when in a playoff game he fumbled picking up the ball like 10 times while allowing the game clock to tick, earning a delay of game penalty.

[terpkristin]

I vaguely remember him...he was a senior in my freshman year. I guess the important thing to remember about him (and that team in general) is that that was one of the first years that MD basketball starting showing it had real potential to be good. By that point, Gary Williams had been there a little while and was developing the squad into what he wanted them to be. The fact that Elliot made third team All-ACC suggests he was a decentish player. Probably not a bad pickup for your team in Australia.

/tk

[Terps]

I also hardly remember him.

[timmyw3]

I remember him very well. Came to Maryland from legendary Dunbar High School in Baltimore. Wasn't thought of as a great recruit and was probably a better football player in high school as a QB on some strong state championship-caliber teams.

He was one of those players who improved every year, from a guy who didn't really belong on the court as a freshman to a guy who was one of the better frontcourt players in the ACC as a senior.

He wasn't flashy by any means and wasn't dominant in any facet of the game, just a solid lunchpail kind of guy. He was probably too small and not athletic enough for an NBA career but he has a decent mid-range game and hits the boards pretty hard. He should be a pretty valuable guy for a team in Australia.

[CraigSca]

I remember him to be a skinny forward who consistently had a better shot that I thought he should have. There were a lot of "oh no"s as he'd hoist up a shot and then a "oh yes" when he'd drain it. He's not an all-star by any means, but he could be deceptively valuable.

[Groundhog]

Well, he's played 2 games for us. Friday night he scored 20pts and grabbed 6 rebounds in a loss, but it was an away game so I didn't see it.

Last night I saw him play at home and man, he's good. The only reason we got an import of his calibre down here is that he was injured all last year so he's clearly just using his stay down under to get back in shape before heading back to Europe for bigger bucks... or maybe he just wanted a summer holiday in Sydney, and who could blame him with the beautiful weather we have right now. :)

The rust showed a little, and he came off the bench because his conditioning isn't where it needs to be. A few times he got the ball down low, or pulled in a rebound or a loose ball, only to have it slapped away by a defender. Maybe the defenders in Europe don't slap and hack as much?

Aside from that he finished wit 20pts again and 8rebs and was 4-8 from long range, and him and our other import, former St Mary's PG E.J. Rowland, were the keys to our victory. His go-to move is where he backs his man in and then fades away with a pretty jumper that he swishes 4 times out of 5. At one point a switch from the defender left former Oklahoma university guard Ebi Ere guarding him, and Elliott demanded the ball, backed him in with ease, and nailed it right over him.

He's very vocal too, and it will be scary when he gets back in shape.

Funniest moment of the game was when he pulled in a loose ball off a steal, then he got swamped by the opposing PG and PF, and they slapped it away from him again. He was clearly pissed, and he basically just grabbed the big guy (a tall guy with long blonde hair who looks like Sunshine from Remember the Titans) and hurled him to the floor and then just glared at him before picking up an unsportsmanlike. Needless to say, Sunshine was noticebaly less aggressive around Elliott for the rest of the game.

[Neuqua]

unsportsmanlike? in basketball?

[Groundhog]

Similar to an intentional foul call.