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Mike Preston: Maryland men’s lacrosse coach John Tillman will put winning formula to the test in Final Four | COMMENTARY

mike preston, baltimore sun
·5 min read

When No. 7 seed Maryland men’s lacrosse plays No. 6 Virginia on Saturday in an NCAA Tournament semifinal, the game will sum up the greatness of Terps coach John Tillman.

In the past, Maryland always had big-name stars such as Logan Wisnauskas, Matt Rambo or Jared Bernhardt to lead the way. Maryland still produces some quality offensive players, but none the caliber of its former standouts.

Yet at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Maryland will appear in its 10th Final Four under Tillman, who became coach in 2011. Tillman also won national championships in 2017 and 2022, the latter capping an unbeaten season.

In those years, Tillman had stars. In 2024, he has turned a bunch of blue-collar players into one of the top four teams in the country and is one win away from his eighth national title game appearance.

“I would say that the players win games,” Tillman said. “They deserve all the credit when you win. When you lose, you don’t put it on the kids. I just don’t believe in that. We’re always in the business of setting them up for success. So I think taking responsibility as a leader is important.

“I have such a good staff — whether it’s the coaches that are with us every day and do such a good job of preparing the kids but also everybody else around us. Our training staff, everybody, is so critical for our success. To me, that’s what sets you up for success as a head coach, the people around you. Coaches get too much blame or credit when you win or lose. I’m just lucky I have so many good people around me.”

That’s vintage Tillman, but he’s the guy in charge. Nearly a month ago, the Terps appeared to be out of contention. They were soundly beaten by Johns Hopkins, 7-5, on April 20 and dominated 14 days later by Penn State, 19-9, in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals.

But whenever a team struggles and finds a way to fight back, it’s a reflection of the coach. Maryland beat Princeton, 16-6, in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament and upset No. 2 seed Duke, 14-11, last week in the quarterfinals.

It’s as if Maryland has discovered a magic formula, which Tillman might have found on his sideline tablet. He looks like one of those highly paid NFL assistants on the sideline. Duke’s John Danowski doesn’t use one, and neither does Virginia’s Lars Tiffany.

Syracuse’s Gary Gait? Oh please, he finally took off the sports jacket last week against Denver in the Orange’s 10-8 quarterfinal loss.

The bottom line, though, is that nothing has changed much for the Terps through the years. They still rely on a strong defense. It’s not as dominant or as physical as it has been in the past, but Maryland has outscored its opponents 169-156 this season, owns a 455-386 advantage in ground balls and has won 231 of 381 faceoffs.

Of course, the Terps have Ajax Zappitello, the best defenseman in the game, two strong long-pole midfielders in Jack McDonald and Nick Alviti, and goalie Logan McNaney, the Most Outstanding Player in the 2022 NCAA Tournament. McNaney isn’t as good as he was two years ago and is coming off a torn ACL, but his experience pays off in big games.

Maryland also has the great equalizer in Luke Wierman, who has won 212 of 342 faceoffs (62%) this season. No lead is safe against Maryland, not as long as Wierman is standing, and that’s why the Terps are so dangerous.

The offense is a mix of one-dimensional players, at least for this season. Maryland has some good shooters in attackmen Braden Erska (24 goals, 15 assists), Eric Malever (14 G, 20 A), Daniel Maltz (28 G, 3 A) and midfielder Daniel Kelly (13 G, 7 A), but also some fine dodgers in midfielders Ryan Siracusa (19 G, 9 A), Eric Spanos (23 G, 11 A), Owen Murphy (7 G, 5 A) and Jack Koras (21 G, 9 A), who might be the best two-way middie on the roster.

Tillman seems to have found the right combination at the right time. There is only one good, all-around team in lacrosse — No. 1 seed Notre Dame — because parity has become a priority in the sport.

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The Cavaliers like to play a fast-paced game with outstanding offensive players such as attackmen Connor Shellenberger (31 G, 51 A), Payton Cormier (64 G, 12 A) and McCabe Millon (39 G, 25 A).

Virginia is averaging 14.2 goals per game, and the Cavaliers’ extra-man unit has scored on 19 of 32 opportunities. It will be interesting to watch Virginia’s faceoff specialist, Anthony Ghobriel, go against Wierman. Ghobriel has won 141 of 248 faceoffs this season for a .659 percentage.

On paper, it looks like a Virginia victory, but this fits into Maryland’s style. The Terps love that deliberate, slow offense to grind on teams. Maryland doesn’t want to run with Virginia but rather make the Cavaliers as slow as, well, turtles.

And if it stays close, seniors such as Wierman, McNaney and Zappitello can pull out another victory.

“In those moments, you really feel like those guys, they’ve been through it, you trust them, you believe in them,” Tillman said. “Realizing that you have some guys that have been there and have done that and they can teach the younger guys and show them the way, they know what it takes. They’re the ones who get it done.”

So does John Tillman. Few in his profession are better.

NCAA Tournament Final Four

Saturday at Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia

• Notre Dame vs. Denver, noon

• Maryland vs. Virginia, 2:30 p.m.

TV: ESPN2