Maryland Faces Double Trouble in Collins Twins

You can’t accuse Maryland point guard Steve Blake of not doing his homework in seeking to identify two obstacles standing in the way of the Terrapins’ first Final Four trip.

“The one guy has a lot of hair,” Blake said Friday. “That’s the only way I can tell them apart. The guy with the hair is the one guy, and the guy with the short hair is the other guy.”

So there you have it: a scalp and scouting report on Stanford’s Jason (long hair) and Jarron (short hair) Collins,

If third-seeded Maryland is going to get by top-seeded Stanford in today’s West Regional final at the Arrowhead Pond, it will have to maneuver past the Stanford tree (mascot) and the trees (Collins twins).

Jason is 7 feet, Jarron is 6-11.

Maryland boasts no starting player taller than 6-9 forward Terence Morris, and its center, Lonny Baxter, is 6-8 only standing on his tippy-toes.

The Collins twins have played so well and so long together they could form their own synchronized basketball team.

Their court presence is equally impressive and deceiving.

To use a big Stanford-like word, the Collins twins are a paradox.

They combine to average 27.5 points and 14.8 rebounds a game, yet are hardly what you call monsters of the middle.

Both are urbane, cerebral and speak with affected, Thurston Howell III voices.

You can’t imagine opposing centers lying awake agonizing over a matchup against either Collins individually, yet the twins as a package represent the best super-sized value this side of your local mini-mart.

Maryland’s Baxter seemed not the least bit intimidated Friday about having to go against the twins.

“We played against bigger guys all year,” he said.

Baxter is a bruising inside player, with an uncanny ability to score over taller opponents. He had 26 points and 14 rebounds in Maryland’s semifinal victory over Georgetown.

So what is he to make of these Collins brothers?

Jason was born first, eight minutes before Jarron, and is regarded as the slightly better player. Jason shoots and talks a little more than his brother. Jason averages 14.6 points and 7.9 rebounds per game to Jarron’s 12.9 and 6.9 averages.

We know, as high school teammates at Harvard-Westlake in North Hollywood, they attended a recruiting dinner with Jim Harrick that soon made Harrick the ex-UCLA coach.

Jarron is a senior now, while Jason technically has two years of eligibility remaining because of injuries, although Jason has not announced yet whether he will return to Stanford next season.

The Collins as individuals are fine, upstanding citizens. Jason likes history; Jarron digs astronomy. What a wild duet.

The big problem they pose is that there are two of them--nearly carbon basketball copies.

They have started 44 games together in college and Stanford has won 42.

Jason has 48 assists this year. Jarron has 47.

Jason has 51 turnovers to Jarron’s 49.

Acting as interchangeable parts in the high-post, low-post offense, Jason and Jarron are unique post players.

“We have lots of sets in offense that go high-low,” Stanford point guard Mike McDonald said. “What’s so dangerous is they both can shoot out to 16, 17 feet. Both have great post moves. Both are great passers, so when you throw them that pass, and the other post guy goes to double team, they can dribble out, look for the open three, or look for the brother cutting to the basket.”

One knock on the Collins twins is that they don’t play with much passion.

Neither jumps well and both prefer the layup to the tomahawk dunk.

Jason averages only 1.3 blocked shots per game and Jarron has only 17 blocks in 33 starts.

McDonald remembers Jarron heading down court as a freshman with a clear path to the basket.

“He puts up a finger roll,” McDonald said. “Most 6-10 guys would try to put up a nasty dunk, and he was finger-rolling. We tease those guys a lot about not dunking like all the other guys, but two points is two points.”

Some players need anger management.

The Collins twins could use a little anger.

When Stanford fell four points behind at the half to Cincinnati in Thursday’s regional semifinal game, McDonald said he and his teammates implored Jason to take a more demonstrative role.

He responded with four second-half blocks to propel a Stanford win.

Aggressiveness does not come naturally for Jason or Jarron.

“People think they’re soft because they don’t dunk on people on a regular basis,” McDonald said. “It’s just not in their games.”

Despite their demeanors, Jason and Jarron are not to be underestimated. Their intuitive instincts for each other’s games make them a formidable tandem.

They are excellent passers and each has effective post moves.

“They pass so well out of traps, they make others better,” Stanford Coach Mike Montgomery said. “They’re a load.”

Bottom line is both brothers may end up playing 10 years in the NBA without ever bending a rim or getting called for a technical foul.

Is that soft? Or is that style?

“It’s not a weakness at all,” Maryland’s Blake said of the twins. “They’re still very physical. They get on the boards. They bang inside like other guys. They just don’t jump as high and would rather lay the ball in.

“That’s what they do, I guess.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Records by Conference

Conference records in this year’s NCAA tournament:

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Conference (Teams) W L Pct. Pacific 10 (5) 11 2 ..846 Atlantic 10 (3) 4 2 .667 West Coast (1) 2 1 .667 Big Ten (7) 9 5 .643 Atlantic Coast (6) 7 4 .636 Conference USA (2) 3 2 .600 Big East (5) 5 5 .500 Big West (1) 1 1 .500 Mid-American (1) 1 1 .500 Mid-Eastern Ath. (1) 1 1 .500 Midwestern Col. (1) 1 1 .500 Southland (1) 1 1 .500 Trans America Ath. (1) 1 1 .500 Southeastern (6) 5 6 ..455 Big 12 (6) 3 6 .333 Missouri Valley (2) 1 2 .333 Western Athletic (2) 1 2 .333 America East (1) 0 1 .000 Big Sky (1) 0 1 .000 Big South (1) 0 1 .000 Colonial (1) 0 1 .000 Ivy League (1) 0 1 .000 Metro Atlantic (1) 0 1 .000 Mid-Continent (1) 0 1 .000 Mountain West (1) 0 1 .000 Northeast (1) 0 1 .000 Ohio Valley (1) 0 1 .000 Patriot League (1) 0 1 .000 Southern (1) 0 1 .000 Southwestern Ath. (1) 0 1 .000 Sun Belt (1) 0 1 .000

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WEST REGIONAL FINAL

STANFORD (31-2)

vs. MARYLAND (24-10)

Today, 1:30 p.m.

Channel 2

CAN HE COACH OR WHAT?

Because he hasn’t reached the Final Four, Maryland’s Gary Williams has received an awful lot of criticism. D6

RIM SHOT, PLEASE

Stanford’s Casey Jacobsen always had trouble shooting at the Pond in high school, but something is different. D6