LG Gill looking forward to increased role down home stretch
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- When senior L.G. Gill transferred to Maryland from Duquesne this past offseason, he likely thought there would be more playing time readily available in College Park than he has seen so far this year, especially given his ability to play the four and five.
TERPS INSIDER message board | SHOP NOW: DEALS on TERPS apparel | LIKE us on FACEBOOK
Thanks to the quick emergence of Terps freshmen forwards Kevin Huerter and Justin Jackson, along with the complementary pair of senior Damonte Dodd and junior Michal Cekovsky rotating in the post, Gill’s time on the court has been sporadic this season--maxing out at 23 minutes in the first meeting against Illinois and falling as low as three minutes against Pittsburgh and Purdue.
The Chesterfield, Va., native is averaging just 12.7 minutes per game so far this year for the Terps, which is below that of the aforementioned bigs and sophomore power forward-center Ivan Bender.
However, with Cekovsky now out for the rest of season with a fractured ankle, Gill should be heading for an increased role at the four and five for Maryland, and he’s looking forward to helping the Terps make their postseason push.
More from TSR: TERPS WILL TRY TO MAKE DO WITHOUT CEKOVSKY AGAINST MINNESOTA | WATCH TURGEON PREVIEW HOME MEETING WITH MINNESOTA
“Definitely one of the things that I was looking forward to when coming to this school was being able to be part of a team that has a good chance of being able to make it to the tournament,” Gill said Feb. 21. “Obviously our team has a great record so far and it’s a great team, so I feel like we’re going to be able to accomplish that goal and I’m looking forward to it. I’m just cherishing all of the last moments that I have.”
Gill’s natural position when he arrived in College Park was at power forward, but Maryland head coach Mark Turgeon needed more depth at center and decided to start letting the 6-foot-8, 230-pounder to play in the low post, which should now come in handy with Cekovsky on the shelf.
“Since I’ve done it in the past, it’s not going to be that big of an adjustment,” Gill said. “But I’m just continuing to enjoy the process of learning a new position and all of that type of stuff. I think if I hadn’t played the five in the past then it might be a different situation, but I kind of know what to expect.”
Turgeon also knows a little bit about what to expect from Gill without Cekovsky in the lineup, having seen the senior play in the 10 games that the 7-foot Slovakian already missed this season, including a 25-point win at Illinois in which Dodd was also out and Gill scored six points and ripped down seven boards in 23 minutes.
Turgeon’s team has taken the next-man-up approach all season, which makes the latest bump in the road familiar territory for the Terps.
“We played the Illinois game without Damonte [Dodd] and [Cekovsky] so we’ve had to do it all year,” Turgeon said. “We’ve had guys sick, a little bit injured, we’ve had different things that never make the media and you just hide and get through it by playing less minutes or whatever. It is what it is. Our guys know the need to step up. Our guys know where we are. We’ve had a terrific season to this point and we’re looking forward to the final stretch.”
Gill has averaged 5.1 points and 2.6 rebounds in games that Cekovsky has missed this year, but he only played 20 or more minutes in three of those contests as he continued to get acclimated to his new team and learn a new position.
Gill will likely see 15 to 20 minutes per night for the Terps for the remainder of the season depending on the personal foul situation with Maryland’s bigs. As his college career winds down, his role for the Terps should just be starting to ramp up, and Gill is ready to make the most of it.
“I just look forward to going out and playing every game like it’s my last,” Gill said. “And I only have a handful left so I don’t want to put any pressure on myself or anything like that.”