ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, January 5, 1997 TAG: 9701060112
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: COLLEGE PARK, MD.
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
THE TERPS PLOD to a 14-point halftime lead in winning easily, 78-62.
Jeff Jones no longer has to worry about his basketball team disappearing at the end of games.
On Saturday, Virginia's disappearing act began with the opening tip.
The Cavaliers' defense was non-existent in the first 20 minutes and 19th-ranked Maryland took advantage for a 78-62 victory at Cole Field House.
Junior guard Sarunas Jasikevicius, a little-known Lithuanian, scored 16 points in the first 15 minutes and finished with a career-high 24 for the Terrapins (12-1 overall, 2-0 ACC).
Virginia (9-4, 2-0) lost for the 14th time in its last 20 games against ACC opposition, although there was little of the bickering that characterized a 67-61 victory over Loyola (Md.) on Thursday night.
``I think too much was made of all that stuff,'' said Jones, who benched leading scorer Courtney Alexander for the last 8:01 against the Greyhounds. ``I don't think it was that big a deal.''
Alexander, publicly chastised by teammates, did not start Saturday but played 28 minutes. He finished with 18 points, including nine in a row to help UVa trim a 16-point deficit to 54-48 with 7:07 left.
It was still a six-point game, 57-51, following a 3-point basket by the Cavaliers' Harold Deane with 6:04 remaining. However, back-to-back UVa turnovers took some of the heat off Maryland, which hit 15 of its final 18 free throws.
``When you bust your rear end to get back in the game, like we did, you better make the plays,'' Jones said. ``Maryland's not going to roll over and play dead and we've got to know that. We can't be so fragile; we need to be tougher.''
Alexander was responsible for one of the turnovers on an inbounds pass that Terrell Stokes took from Norman Nolan, but Jones showed surprising faith in Alexander when he assigned him to high-scoring Keith Booth late in the game.
``It's been an emotional roller-coaster and that's all I'm going to say about that,'' said Alexander, who left the locker room Thursday without speaking to the media.
``My situation doesn't really matter. We're sitting here with a loss. We're sitting here 0-2 in the ACC. The last thing we want to do is get our season started off on this note again.''
The Cavaliers lost six of their first eight ACC games last year and dropped both meetings to Maryland, thanks primarily to Booth, who scored 29 and 27 points against the Cavaliers.
Virginia used a host of defenders against Booth this time and held him to three field goals - none in the second half - and 12 points. However, they paid little attention to Jasikevicius, who has done little but shoot 3-pointers until this year.
``The guy stepped up and hit some big shots and I think that was the difference in the game, regardless of what happened in the second half,'' UVa guard Curtis Staples, who, technically speaking, was guarding Jasikevicius.
``I started on him, but, at the same time, I wasn't in a denial situation. I was `flexing' every time Keith Booth got the ball, [and] even double-teaming at times. We underestimated [Jasikevicius] and he made us pay.''
Maryland shot 54.5 percent from the field in grabbing a 42-28 halftime lead, but the Terrapins made only five of 24 shots to start the second half. Virginia wasn't much better, however, shooting 32.4 percent in the second half and 32.8 for the game.
``I think we wasted some opportunities,'' Jones said. ``Some guys wanted to make some things happen and had a quick trigger. They need to understand, if they're not having a good shooting night, they need to be a little more patient.''
Alexander, who was 7-of-18 from the field, admitted he didn't use good shot selection. During one stretch in the second half, he took at least one shot on eight of 11 UVa possessions, including five in a row.
As opposed to Virginia, which is 0-2 in conference play for the first time in Jones' seven seasons, Maryland is off to its best start since the 1975-76 season. The Terps, picked eighth in the ACC, lost four starters from last year's 17-13 team.
``I was trying to hide after the first couple of games last year,'' Maryland coach Gary Williams said. ``I thought we would be competitive but, in this league, there are no sure wins.
``We understand we have to go on the road now.''
As the Cavaliers can attest, that's not always a pleasant experience.
NOTE: Please see microfilm for scores.
LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: AP. 1. Colin Ducharme (center) of Virginia tries toby CNBprotect the ball from Maryland defenders Rodney Elliott (left) and
Laron Profit. color. 2. Keith Booth (22) of Maryland slices between
Curtis Staples (left) and Colin Ducharme during action in the first
half.