COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Things are getting going a little earlier than usual for the Maryland men’s basketball team this summer. The Terps are on the court fine-tuning their game and preparing for a European vacation.
The team is headed to Italy at the end of the month. The touring turtles will spend ten days visiting Rome, Florence, Venice and Lake Como. They will take in all the sights and also play three exhibition games.
This trip isn’t only about getting a head start on building a team to contend when the season arrives in the fall, it’s about team-building off the court as well.
The Terrapins’ roster has six new players - two transfers and four freshman, like St. Frances grad and Baltimore native Jahnathan Lamothe. The young guys and vets, like graduate Jahmir Young, are ready to cross the pond.
"I’m just excited to get down there. We’re going to be out there for a little while. So, it’s a great time for us to bond, connect, spend a lot of time with each other," said Young.
"First, I’m looking forward to just playing together. We play against each other a lot. So, just all of us playing together," said Lamothe. "I’m excited to try the food there and just explore. I’ve never been there. I’m just looking forward to everything that it has to offer."
"Most importantly I think it’s a great opportunity for the guys on the team to really bond, get to know each other, spend serious time off the court together, do some really interesting things," added Willard.
Willard added that he is treating the time between Thursday and when the Terps leave like an NBA training camp. It’s going to be hard and intense. He added that their trip overseas will be the reward for the players.
The Terps say goodbye to the states and ciao to Italia on July 31.
Follow Shawn Stepner on Twitter @StepnerWMAR and Facebook
