COLLEGE PARK -- Derek Brown's last official instruction to Rashida Suber and Shalamar Oakley as their coach yesterday was to have them take their name cards from the podium at the Comcast Center interview room as mementos of their special day and of their remarkable careers.
Coppin State's senior guards put the Eagles on their tiny backs and carried them deep into the second half of their first-round NCAA tournament game against heavily favored Maryland. Eventually, the top-seeded Terps' talent and height won out in an 80-66 win over 16th-seeded Coppin, but not before Oakley and Suber had earned a world of respect.
Maryland vs. Nebraska NCAA second-round game, Comcast Center, College Park, tomorrow, 7 p.m. or 9:30 p.m., ESPN2 Records: No. 1 seed Maryland (31-3), No. 8 seed Nebraska (21-11)