The Maryland men's basketball team last night played its last scheduled game at Baltimore's Royal Farms Arena, defeating Charlotte 88-72 before an "ecstatic" crowd of 7,139, according to Jonas Shaffer of the Baltimore SUN. UM coach Mark Turgeon after the game "didn't indicate when or whether they'd next return" (Baltimore SUN, 12/21). In DC, Roman Stubbs noted UM's game last night "represents the latest push to revitalize the program’s presence in Baltimore." The school last December played in Baltimore for the first time in 13 years, beating Princeton "in front of a raucous crowd." Scheduling and promoting a return trip to the state’s largest city "wasn’t without challenges." UM was a top-10 team a year ago and played Princeton on a Saturday night, while the "novelty of playing in Baltimore for the first time in more than a decade also boosted interest in the game, with more than 11,000 fans packing into an arena that seats about 12,000 for basketball." Returning this season was a priority for Turgeon and his staff, who have "worked tirelessly to boost their footing in Baltimore since arriving in College Park" in '11. However, unlike last season’s game, this "rendition had to be slotted for a weeknight five days before Christmas because the school’s final-exam schedule ran through Monday, and Xfinity Center is being used for winter commencement ceremonies this week." Game promoter Russ Potts prior to last night's game said, "We will not have as good of crowd as last year, but I think we’ll have a good crowd." UM currently "has no firm plan in place to return to Baltimore next season or beyond, and discussions likely won’t take place until after this season" (WASHINGTON POST, 12/20).
