Maryland rolls in preseason opener as Diamond Stone gets a starting nod
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Version 0 of 1. This was just a dress rehearsal, so Diamond Stone had no reason for stage fright during Maryland’s exhibition game against Southern New Hampshire on Friday night. He was a celebrity in College Park long before he officially enrolled at the school, and he received a hero’s welcome as the first player introduced even though Maryland was unofficially opening the season against a Division II team with no player standing above 6 feet 8. Maryland’s 91-55 win over the Penmen wasn’t necessarily resounding — the third-ranked Terrapins committed 23 turnovers on a night when they experimented nonstop with different lineups — but fans received a promising snapshot of Stone. The 6-11 freshman scored six points on the team’s first five possessions, including a vicious two-handed slam that sent a crowd of 13,598 into a frenzy befitting of a midseason game. That crowd was larger than 10 of 19 regular season games last season. Stone finished with a game-high 16 points and five rebounds in just 17 minutes for Maryland, which will open the season Friday against Mount St. Mary’s. [Terrapins Insider: Chemistry remains a work in progress] “Just the crowd and just the team, finally playing against somebody else,” Stone said, “it was a blast.” While Stone’s signing in April bolstered Maryland’s place in the national championship conversation and contributed to the most hyped offseason since the early 2000s, his transition from high school star has been a bit bumpy. Stone arrived in College Park out of shape, and while he possesses an accelerated offensive skill set for a player his age, it was apparent it would take a period of adjustment on the defensive end. Stone dropped 21 pounds in about two months (he’s now playing at 249 pounds) and began to focus on his defensive approach for the first time. He has made the most progress over the past two weeks, which prompted Coach Mark Turgeon to choose the freshman as his starting center over junior Damonte Dodd on Friday night. “Diamond Stone showed he was pretty special,” Turgeon said. “I just feel like eventually he’s going to be our starting center, so why not do it now?” [Terrapins Insider: Maryland ranked No. 3 in AP preseason poll] Stone was far from perfect. He started the game by hitting all three of his field goals, but Stone committed his second personal foul with 11 minutes 10 seconds left in the first half. He played only five minutes before halftime, but his early exit wasn’t an issue on a night when Maryland had five scorers in double figures and received 12 points and 10 rebounds from power forward Robert Carter Jr. Turgeon warned Stone that Maryland won’t have that luxury every night as the schedule ramps up. Helping Stone learn how to stay out of foul trouble is just another piece of the process, Turgeon said. The lasting image of Stone’s performance came in the middle of the second half, when he called for and received a pass in the post. The Penmen immediately sent a double team. Stone remained patient and kicked a pass to Carter, who drained a three-pointer from the left perimeter. Stone nodded at Carter as he ran back on defense, knowing this is just the beginning. “It was my first college game, and Coach Turgeon just said play inside out,” Stone said. “So that’s what we did.” |