Thursday, March 8, 2007

The Gary Williams sideline show

Some shows never get old.
Like watching Gary Williams work the Maryland sideline. He works it the way a jackhammer works on a sidewalk.

Then there are days like Thursday when Williams’ Terps looked like they wanted to be anyplace but inside the St. Pete Times Forum playing Miami. They redefined flat, ragged and disinterested, at least in the first half.
For a time, Williams was okay. Then, like lava in the ground too long, the frustration came spewing out.

The best moment may have been when D.J. Strawberry threw a 200-mile per hour pass that zinged off a teammate and out of bounds. Williams did a quick pirouette in front of the bench then the rare triple-stomp as he raged against all the injustice in the world, especially unforced turnovers.
Then Williams crouched down and kept raging, his face the color of his Maryland red tie.

Three minutes later, Strawberry was dribbling upcourt when, unguarded, he bounced the ball off his foot and out of bounds.

It was too much for Williams. He just stood there, hands on his hips, the weight of the world on his shoulders, and he sighed.
He was just resting. The show wasn’t over. It never is.
-- Ron Green Jr.

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