KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Steve Francis reiterated his claim that he would return to Maryland for another season, but his teammates sound as if they are prepared for his departure.

"I think we can have a great team next season," freshman wing forward Danny Miller said. "He [Francis] is a great player, and it hurts to lose him."

As the Terps dissected an NCAA tournament loss to St. John's and looked ahead to the 1999-2000 season, they were mindful that it does not figure to include Francis, the junior-college transfer who became one of the nation's most publicized players.

Several NBA general managers have said that if he decides to come out early, Francis would be one of the top five picks in the June draft. Francis considered turning pro out of Allegany College last spring, and coach Gary Williams put up a good front over a player who would play point guard in the NBA.

"I'm going to explain everything to Steve, and hopefully, he's going to stay," Williams said. "Obviously, I want him to play basketball for Maryland. He's got a great topside to him, and he can do a lot more things. I don't think Steve wants this to be his last college game, to tell you the truth."

There were reports out of the St. John's locker room that Francis' trash-talking included boasts toward Red Storm players that they would be in college next season while he would be in the NBA.

"He was going on about how he's going to make his money while we're still playing in college," the Red Storm's Tyrone Grant told the New York Daily News. "That told us where his mind was."

If it was his last college game, Francis did not exit gracefully, as he refused to shake the hand offered by St. John's sixth man Reggie Jessie at game's end. Francis was the first player off the floor at Thompson-Boling Arena, and said Thursday's collapse was a topic he wants to discuss with Williams.

"It's something that really hurts me," said Francis, who scored 11 of his 13 points in the last 16 minutes. "I want to go in and talk to [Williams] about what went down. I want to go into his office and take it from there."

Terence Morris, the 6-foot-9 sophomore forward out of Frederick, is considered to be as solid a pro prospect as Francis. The 20-year-old was out-muscled by St. John's Ron Artest, and a 3-for-10 shooting performance and four rebounds in the season finale backed up the opinion he voiced before the game.

"I know that I'm not ready to leave Maryland now," said Morris, a first-year starter. "I'm just not strong enough yet. I've got to try to get stronger, and improve my ball-handling. I've got to know better what to do in certain situations."

And what of the millions of dollars that would go to a lottery pick?

"I've heard people talk about that, but I'm not looking at that right now," Morris said. "It's nice to hear those things, but I've got two years of college ball left."

Without Francis, Morris would be the centerpiece of Maryland next season, and if Elton Brand were to leave Duke, he could be the top returning player in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Sun staff writer Don Markus contributed to this article.

Pub Date: 3/20/99