Revenge on their minds

No. 9 Maryland (3-0) is not the same team that beat the Hoosiers in the National Championship game last year, there's no arguing that. But as IU travels to Conseco Field House in Indianapolis tonight, senior forward Jeff Newton said vengeance will still be on their minds.\n"It's gonna be very serious. Everybody's gonna be intense for it," he said. "We've gotta have it. It's kind of revenge. They stole something from us last year and we want to try to get part of that back."\nSince the No. 10 Hoosiers (4-0) fell to them in the national title game 64-52 last April, the Terrapins have lost four of their starters. \nAll-American shooting guard Juan Dixon is playing with Jared Jeffries on the Washington Wizards; center Lonny Baxter is a Chicago Bull; forward Chris Wilcox made the early jump to the NBA and was a lottery pick for the L.A. Clippers, and Byron Mouton, last year's other starting forward, was lost to graduation.\nThat's a ton of talent to lose in one year, but IU coach Mike Davis noted that the Terps have reloaded, retaining their status as one of the elite programs in the country.\n"(Maryland coach) Gary Williams is one of the best coaches out there and it's kind of like Miami football, it doesn't matter who he loses, they're gonna come right back and be the same team as last year," he said.\nSenior point guard Steve Blake, who has averaged 7.3 points and 8.6 assists through Maryland's first three games, is the Terps sole returning starter. But the team does not lack in experience, as Williams has started five seniors in every game.\n6-9 senior forward Ryan Randle has stepped into the starting lineup and improved his numbers to 12.7 points and 4.7 rebounds per game and senior shooting guard Drew Nicholas has taken over Dixon's role as the team's go-to guy. He is averaging 21 points per game this season.\nAside from the upper-classmen, three freshman have also made significant contributions. \nFirst-year forwards Travis Garrison and Nik Caner-Medley are both averaging seven points per game and have pulled down 5.3 and 4.7 boards per contest respectively. Freshman guard John Gilchrist is averaging 7 points per game as well. \nJunior guard A.J. Moye explained that the combination of fresh faces and improved seniors makes the Terps a very different squad this year.\n"It's good that it's Maryland but I've got to reiterate that it's two different teams," Moye said. \nThe Hoosiers will be bringing some new talent into Conseco as well tonight.\nFreshman shooting guard Bracey Wright, who is leading the team with 17 points per game, was named the Big Ten Player of the Week after his MVP performance in Maui. Wright is the first IU freshman to receive the award since Luke Recker did so in 1998.\nFreshman point guard Marshall Strickland has also come on strong for IU recently. \nHe said Maryland was among his top choices last year and, as a native of the state, admitted the game would have a little extra meaning for him as well.\n"It's a big game in all aspects," he said. "It would be a great win for us (or) for Maryland because we're both underrated teams."\nThe underrated tag may not apply to IU for much longer, as they jumped nine spots in the AP poll to earn a No. 10 ranking. In the ESPN/USA Today poll, they also jumped nine spots, from No. 20 to No. 11.\nDavis said he was happy his team gained some respect but explained that, as quickly as the high ranking was granted, it can be taken away. \n"This is a great reward for our program after winning four games this past week," he said. "However, we still have a long way to go, and the only way to stay up in the polls is to keep winning. We take a lot of pride in a tough non-conference schedule, and we have our work cut out for us, starting tomorrow night against Maryland"