COLLEGE PARK -- Maryland junior forward James Gist listened to the repetitive click ... click ... click of the jump rope hitting the court at Comcast Center as he looped it over and over his 6-foot-8 frame.
The elementary drill mimicked the rhythm and timing essential to blocking a shot - an anticipated, in-your-face pride play that can shift the momentum of a game with the swat of a hand. It's a play that has done exactly that for Maryland on numerous occasions this season and will be a factor again tonight in the Terps' Atlantic Coast Conference opener at Boston College (5-2).
Maryland@Boston College Tonight, 6:30, Comcast SportsNet, 1300 AM, 105.7 FM