Cowan Jr. looking to leave winning legacy in final season
COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Currently in the top 15 all-time for Maryland in free throws made (ninth), assists (10th), and 3-point field goals made (12th), as well as ranked 23rd in points scored so far throughout his career, point guard Anthony Cowan Jr. returned for his senior season in College Park for more than just climbing the statistical ranks any further.
The Terps’ floor general is back to leave a winning legacy.
“I want to win, that’s been my main goal this whole time,” Cowan said at Maryland’s media day Oct. 15. “They can say it’s all about the points and assists. But at the end of the day, we haven’t won anything so we have to get that.“
Last year, Cowan led the Terps in points, assists, and steals. Entering a season where Maryland is expected to start the year as a top-10 team with Cowan leading the way, the Bowie, Maryland, native finds himself on the 2020 Cousy Award Watch List — an award given to the nation’s best point guard — as well as a unanimous All-Big Ten selection — one of just three players in the conference to be selected unanimously.
But Cowan isn’t overly concerned with preseason accolades. He’s squarely focused on taking his team to the next level of success.
“It’s definitely good to be acknowledged, but it’s all good. I’m here to win something now,” Cowan said. “We need to win. That’s what I’m here for.”
In Cowan’s three years in College Park so far, Maryland has made the NCAA Tournament twice, winning a total of one game. The Terps fell one bucket short of advancing to the Sweet 16 a year ago, and while the postseason appearance landed Cowan his first tourney win, the disappointing exit in the Round of 32 left him wanting more.
“I have to win something. That’s just how I feel,” Cowan said. “It’s hard to even sleep for a few days if I’m not winning, if I’m not helping my team win. I was coming back just to do that. [The 69-67 loss last year to LSU in the NCAA Tournament ] definitely prepared us, it definitely gave everybody a taste of what the postseason was like, it gave me a taste. I hadn’t won a postseason game, [the win over Belmont] was the first postseason game I have won. So to get one of those under my belt, I think it’s big time.”
One person who is happy to have Cowan back in College Park for another year and is certainly on board with his commitment to doing whatever it takes to win this year is Terps head coach Mark Turgeon, who is seeing a renewed fire in his 6-foot senior point guard.
“In a world where it's not great to become a senior, I am really proud of Anthony, maybe he can make it cool again to do it,” Turgeon said. “Anthony came back to win. Anthony's done a lot of things with scoring points and steals and assists. But his legacy. He wants his legacy to be winning and winning at a high level, and he knows he'll be remembered more if our team wins at a high level, so that's why Anthony came back. As he said, unfinished business.”
While Cowan isn’t the most vocal leader on or off the court, there’s no doubt that he’s still considered to be a catalyst for the Terps because of his experience and talent. Leadership is sometimes about leading by example, and that’s what Turgeon has seen Cowan do throughout his career, especially entering his senior season.
“I asked the guys that have been here for several years and they brag about [Cowan’s] leadership off the floor, and he's become a much better leader,” Turgeon said. “He's got so much experience that's been good. And he's been a better leader on the floor. It’s not natural for him to talk but he's been a much better leader so I expect Anthony have a great year. He's shooting the ball better than he's ever shot it here. Last year at times he would throw it instead of shooting it. Now he's really shooting the ball at a high level, and he's very confident.”
Cowan is the type of heady player any college basketball program would want with the ball in his hands, calling the shots on the floor. He graduated from Maryland with his bachelor’s degree in Communications after just three years and is currently pursuing his master’s in Professional Studies in Technology Entrepreneurship.
It doesn’t seem that long ago that Cowan was winning a WCAC Championship in high school for his alma mater St. John’s College as a senior. Turgeon said Cowan understands what that win did for his legacy in high school. And now Cowan is hoping to end his college career on a similar high note.
“That was a big time for me; it was something I really put my mind to,” Cowan said of his high school league title. “Just winning something, that’s all that I’m really looking at here this year, is winning something. Just at the end of the day, we need to go one day at a time, one practice at a time, so we can’t really look too far [ahead] at winning any championships until we finish what we have to do at practice.”
Cowan will have his first chance to lead the Terps to win this season when the Terps take the floor Nov. 5 and kick off their season in College Park by hosting Holy Cross.