The first game of the 2012 ACC Tournament will feature the eighth seeded Maryland Terrapins taking on the ninth seed in Wake Forest. Maryland finished the season with a 16-14 overall record and 6-10 in conference play. The Demon Deacons suffered through a 13-17 campaign and were 4-12 in the ACC.
Neither team enters the tournament playing well with both riding three game losing streaks. Maryland has lost seven of its last 10 games while Wake won just twice in its last 10. Maryland won the only meeting between the two clubs during the regular season 70-64.
Maryland is led by sophomore guard Terrell Stoglin who is averaging 21.2 points per game. Mark Turgeon successfully navigated a difficult situation replacing Maryland legend Gary Williams on the bench and leading the Terps to a winning record despite a lack of depth particularly in its front court signaling that there are better days to come.
C.J. Harris (16.8 ppg) and Travis McKie (15.9 ppg) give the Demon Deacons a solid pair of scorers but they battled season long struggles defensively under coach Jeff Bzdelik.
Tip off for the game is scheduled for noon on Thursday and will be televised on ESPNU. The winner will advance to take on top seeded North Carolina on Friday.
For more on this game Maryland fans should check out Testudo Times and Wake Forest fans should take a look at Blogger So Dear. For more college basketball news and analysis head on over to SB Nation's College Basketball page.