Syracuse, N.Y. ? Maryland’s Lonny Baxter parked his 6-foot-8, 260-pound body in the lane, and the only time he left the paint was when the whistle blew and it was time for him to shoot foul shots.
Baxter delivered a steady diet of inside muscle that enabled the Terps to reach the Final Four for the second consecutive year and earn the senior a second straight regional MVP award.
Baxter powered his way to a team-high 29 points to carry top-seeded Maryland to its 90-82 victory over No. 2 Connecticut in the East Regional final Sunday night in the Carrier Dome.
“His performance was unbelievable,” said junior point guard Steve Blake. “He made shots when we needed them, he dominated down low, and he can dominate like that against anybody.”
“We didn’t want our season to end tonight,” said Baxter, the MVP of last year’s West Regional. “They came out hitting some big shots, making big plays. We just stayed with it no matter what the situation.”
Baxter shot 7-for-12 from the field, 15-for-18 from the line, and forced his Connecticut counterpart, 6-9 freshman center Emeka Okafor, to the bench with foul trouble.
Okafor, who entered No. 2 in the nation in blocked shots at 4.2, was limited to six points and six rebounds in 23 minutes and had only one rejection.
Baxter went to work quickly Sunday night. He scored 13 points in the first half and helped force Okafor to sit out the final 6:44 with two fouls. He was even better in the second half and needed exactly 60 seconds to force Okafor to the bench with his third foul.
“We need Emeka’s presence in there for a whole bunch of different reasons,” Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun said. “But that’s part of the game, guys are going to commit fouls, and things are going to happen, and in this case it did.”
Baxter’s spinning banker with 2:08 remaining put Maryland ahead to stay, 81-79. On Maryland’s next possession, he forced Connecticut sophomore forward Caron Butler to pick up his fourth foul and sank two foul shots for an 83-79 lead.
“He’s such a load,” Calhoun said. “He’s a tremendously efficient offensive player.”
“We’re just happy to be going back to the Final Four,” Baxter said. “It was a very close game, but we stayed tough and got a great effort from everybody tonight.”
Syracuse, N.Y. ? Maryland’s Lonny Baxter parked his 6-foot-8, 260-pound body in the lane, and the only time he left the paint was when the whistle blew and it was time for him to shoot foul shots.
Baxter delivered a steady diet of inside muscle that enabled the Terps to reach the Final Four for the second consecutive year and earn the senior a second straight regional MVP award.
Baxter powered his way to a team-high 29 points to carry top-seeded Maryland to its 90-82 victory over No. 2 Connecticut in the East Regional final Sunday night in the Carrier Dome.
“His performance was unbelievable,” said junior point guard Steve Blake. “He made shots when we needed them, he dominated down low, and he can dominate like that against anybody.”
“We didn’t want our season to end tonight,” said Baxter, the MVP of last year’s West Regional. “They came out hitting some big shots, making big plays. We just stayed with it no matter what the situation.”
Baxter shot 7-for-12 from the field, 15-for-18 from the line, and forced his Connecticut counterpart, 6-9 freshman center Emeka Okafor, to the bench with foul trouble.
Okafor, who entered No. 2 in the nation in blocked shots at 4.2, was limited to six points and six rebounds in 23 minutes and had only one rejection.
Baxter went to work quickly Sunday night. He scored 13 points in the first half and helped force Okafor to sit out the final 6:44 with two fouls. He was even better in the second half and needed exactly 60 seconds to force Okafor to the bench with his third foul.
“We need Emeka’s presence in there for a whole bunch of different reasons,” Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun said. “But that’s part of the game, guys are going to commit fouls, and things are going to happen, and in this case it did.”
Baxter’s spinning banker with 2:08 remaining put Maryland ahead to stay, 81-79. On Maryland’s next possession, he forced Connecticut sophomore forward Caron Butler to pick up his fourth foul and sank two foul shots for an 83-79 lead.
“He’s such a load,” Calhoun said. “He’s a tremendously efficient offensive player.”
“We’re just happy to be going back to the Final Four,” Baxter said. “It was a very close game, but we stayed tough and got a great effort from everybody tonight.”
Syracuse, N.Y. ? Maryland’s Lonny Baxter parked his 6-foot-8, 260-pound body in the lane, and the only time he left the paint was when the whistle blew and it was time for him to shoot foul shots.
Baxter delivered a steady diet of inside muscle that enabled the Terps to reach the Final Four for the second consecutive year and earn the senior a second straight regional MVP award.
Baxter powered his way to a team-high 29 points to carry top-seeded Maryland to its 90-82 victory over No. 2 Connecticut in the East Regional final Sunday night in the Carrier Dome.
“His performance was unbelievable,” said junior point guard Steve Blake. “He made shots when we needed them, he dominated down low, and he can dominate like that against anybody.”
“We didn’t want our season to end tonight,” said Baxter, the MVP of last year’s West Regional. “They came out hitting some big shots, making big plays. We just stayed with it no matter what the situation.”
Baxter shot 7-for-12 from the field, 15-for-18 from the line, and forced his Connecticut counterpart, 6-9 freshman center Emeka Okafor, to the bench with foul trouble.
Okafor, who entered No. 2 in the nation in blocked shots at 4.2, was limited to six points and six rebounds in 23 minutes and had only one rejection.
Baxter went to work quickly Sunday night. He scored 13 points in the first half and helped force Okafor to sit out the final 6:44 with two fouls. He was even better in the second half and needed exactly 60 seconds to force Okafor to the bench with his third foul.
“We need Emeka’s presence in there for a whole bunch of different reasons,” Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun said. “But that’s part of the game, guys are going to commit fouls, and things are going to happen, and in this case it did.”
Baxter’s spinning banker with 2:08 remaining put Maryland ahead to stay, 81-79. On Maryland’s next possession, he forced Connecticut sophomore forward Caron Butler to pick up his fourth foul and sank two foul shots for an 83-79 lead.
“He’s such a load,” Calhoun said. “He’s a tremendously efficient offensive player.”
“We’re just happy to be going back to the Final Four,” Baxter said. “It was a very close game, but we stayed tough and got a great effort from everybody tonight.”
Syracuse, N.Y. ? Maryland’s Lonny Baxter parked his 6-foot-8, 260-pound body in the lane, and the only time he left the paint was when the whistle blew and it was time for him to shoot foul shots.
Baxter delivered a steady diet of inside muscle that enabled the Terps to reach the Final Four for the second consecutive year and earn the senior a second straight regional MVP award.
Baxter powered his way to a team-high 29 points to carry top-seeded Maryland to its 90-82 victory over No. 2 Connecticut in the East Regional final Sunday night in the Carrier Dome.
“His performance was unbelievable,” said junior point guard Steve Blake. “He made shots when we needed them, he dominated down low, and he can dominate like that against anybody.”
“We didn’t want our season to end tonight,” said Baxter, the MVP of last year’s West Regional. “They came out hitting some big shots, making big plays. We just stayed with it no matter what the situation.”
Baxter shot 7-for-12 from the field, 15-for-18 from the line, and forced his Connecticut counterpart, 6-9 freshman center Emeka Okafor, to the bench with foul trouble.
Okafor, who entered No. 2 in the nation in blocked shots at 4.2, was limited to six points and six rebounds in 23 minutes and had only one rejection.
Baxter went to work quickly Sunday night. He scored 13 points in the first half and helped force Okafor to sit out the final 6:44 with two fouls. He was even better in the second half and needed exactly 60 seconds to force Okafor to the bench with his third foul.
“We need Emeka’s presence in there for a whole bunch of different reasons,” Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun said. “But that’s part of the game, guys are going to commit fouls, and things are going to happen, and in this case it did.”
Baxter’s spinning banker with 2:08 remaining put Maryland ahead to stay, 81-79. On Maryland’s next possession, he forced Connecticut sophomore forward Caron Butler to pick up his fourth foul and sank two foul shots for an 83-79 lead.
“He’s such a load,” Calhoun said. “He’s a tremendously efficient offensive player.”
“We’re just happy to be going back to the Final Four,” Baxter said. “It was a very close game, but we stayed tough and got a great effort from everybody tonight.”
