Unprepared and Uninspired: Monarchs No-Show in College Park
COLLEGE PARK, Md. — If you turned the game on ten minutes late Sunday afternoon, you didn’t miss the start; you missed the finish.
By the time Old Dominion finally decided to join the game at the Xfinity Center, they were already buried under a 17-0 Maryland avalanche. The final score—a 73-58 loss to a middling Terrapins squad—doesn’t accurately reflect the sheer lack of readiness that has become the hallmark of the Mike Jones tenure.
For a program that once prided itself on "Old School" toughness, this was another masterclass in being physically and mentally overwhelmed from the opening tip.
The 17-0 Indictment
Good teams can survive a cold shooting night. They cannot survive an eight-minute scoreless drought to start a basketball game. The Monarchs missed their first 11 shots, looking like a team that hadn't seen a scouting report or a practice floor in a week.
While Maryland (7-6) isn't exactly a powerhouse this season, they didn't have to be. They simply had to be organized. ODU looked lost against the Terps’ length, and the defensive rotations were essentially nonexistent as Isaiah Watts came off the bench to drop 17 first-half points.
This isn’t an anomaly; it’s a pattern. The "slow start" has transitioned from a fluke to a fundamental failure in coaching and preparation.
Wiggins: A Lone Bright Spot in a Dark Season
If there is any reason to keep the TV on these days, it’s the development of freshman Zacch Wiggins.
While the "veteran" leaders on this roster spent the afternoon clanking shots and turning the ball over, Wiggins played with the poise of someone who actually belongs in a Division I rotation. He finished with 10 points on a crisp 4-of-8 from the floor—refreshingly efficient on a day where the rest of the team treated the rim like it was 20 feet high.
Wiggins’ activity and willingness to compete in the paint were the only reasons ODU managed to "win" the second half (40-36). But in the Mike Jones era, winning a second half when you’re already down 20 is the ultimate hollow victory. It’s "garbage time" greatness that does nothing to mask the stench of a game lost before the first media timeout.
The Final Word
At 4-10, the Monarchs are a ship without a rudder. The defensive identity is gone, the offensive "system" is a myth, and the preparation is clearly lacking.
If Mike Jones was brought in to revitalize ODU basketball, the pulse is getting harder to find. When a team consistently shows up to marquee road games looking like they’re surprised there’s a game going on, that falls squarely on the man in the suit.
How many more "learning opportunities" can this fan base endure before the administration admits that this experiment has failed?