Sam Cassell

Baltimore native Sam Cassell Jr. discusses his commitment to Maryland with Capitol Hoops after the Capital Classic on Saturday in Alexandria, Va.

  Baltimore Sun reporter Jeff Barker, intern and Diamondback co-sports editor Josh Vitale, and editor Matt Bracken weigh in on the three biggest topics of the past week in Maryland sports. Were you surprised that junior point guard Pe'Shon Howard plans to transfer? Jeff Barker: No. It's too bad it didn't work out better for him - he's a smart, sensitive guy. But it wasn't surprising. The marriage between Maryland and “Hollywood P” wasn't working this season. How do we know?

Two days after soaking in the love of the fans in his basketball home, Sam Cassell bathed in the admiration of the fans in his real hometown. And after spending most of Saturday evening as the center of attention at a celebrity charity game at the Towson Center, Cassell proclaimed that neither Boston, Baltimore nor the NBA had seen the last of him in uniform. "I'm playing next year, playing my 16th year," Cassell said without hesitation, minutes after the conclusion of the game put on by his friend and fellow Dunbar alumnus Kurk Lee, benefiting Lee's foundation.

Sam Cassell Jr. is 900 miles from where everyone thought he'd be as a college freshman. But the West Baltimore native and former Maryland signee has spent the past year making the most out of a less-than-ideal situation. Shortly after the NCAA ruled him ineligible for Division I competition following an investigation of coursework he completed at Notre Dame Prep in Fitchburg, Mass., Cassell left Maryland for Marianna, Fla., enrolling at JUCO basketball powerhouse Chipola College.

MINNEAPOLIS - The date was March 17, 1987, when The Sun published its annual 20-player All-Metro first and second basketball teams. The pictured faces all beamed, their basketball promise seemingly certain. Sam Cassell, a junior point guard at Dunbar at the time, looked that day for his name, and eventually found it. In the honorable mention column. For some, that would be a pretty significant accomplishment, but in Cassell's mind, that was the first, but not the last, time his skills would be overlooked.

When Dave Carrodine sat down nearly three years ago to develop a marketing plan for Sam Cassell, he didn't have the easiest of jobs. Cassell was not a lottery pick (he was the 24th player taken in the 1993 NBA draft, by the Houston Rockets). He lacked the name recognition of Chris Webber, the top pick that year. And he was attempting to break through in a market where future Hall of Famer Hakeem Olajuwon was entrenched."When I first started out with Sam, it would be hard to get people to take my calls, and when they did they said, 'No, thank you,' " said Carrodine, the vice president for marketing at Columbia-based Precept Sports.

On the surface, the situation Sam Cassell finds himself in this season with the Milwaukee Bucks is quite different from others he had faced during his first six years in the NBA. He has more often than not looked like a completely different player. In fact, Cassell finally is playing more like a point guard than a points guard. "I haven't changed my game," Cassell said recently. "I'm just throwing the ball to guys who are making shots. It's that simple." In shooting guard Ray Allen and forward Glenn Robinson, Cassell has two players who, despite Milwaukee's 28-31 record, represented the East in the NBA All-Star Game.

Bulls@Celtics 8 P.M. [ESPN] It doesn't figure to be much of a contest. Boston is even more loaded than when it got off to the sizzling start that allowed the Celts to already clinch a playoff spot. To the Big Three of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, the Celtics have now added Sam Cassell (Dunbar). And the Bulls (12 games under .500) - well, they'll always have their memories.

TAMPA, Fla. -- Gary Alexander scored 28 points, hitting seven of them with two minutes remaining in the game, to give South Florida a 92-88 victory over Florida State last night.South Florida (6-1), which beat the Florida Gators in Gainesville 73-71 Sunday, defeated Florida State (4-2) before a SunDome record crowd of 10,411.Sam Cassell (Dunbar) scored 22 points to lead the Seminoles. But Cassell fouled out with 4 minutes, 22 seconds remaining and Alexander's seven points in the last two minutes sealed the win for South Florida.

Mixed martial arts competition makes its debut in the state of Maryland as more than 5,000 fans turn out to watch the Shogun Fights event at 1st Mariner Arena. Blood and bruises were in plain view during the 11 fights on the card, but there were no serious injuries, and the promotion ran relatively smoothly. Local celebrities who attended the event included Ravens running back Ray Rice, Dunbar graduate and current Washington Wizards assistant coach Sam Cassell, and former Colts running back Lenny Moore.

Baltimore Sun reporters Jeff Barker and Don Markus and editor Matt Bracken weigh in on the three biggest topics of the past week in Maryland  sports. Coach Mark Turgeon talked this week about how much center Alex Len has progressed during the offseason. How good can Len be this season? Jeff Barker: Turgeon was so enthusiastic about Len's progress -- his conditioning, his summer practices, his attitude --  that he kept starting to say that the player could be twice as good in the low post as he was last year.

Baltimore Sun reporters Jeff Barker and Don Markus and editor Matt Bracken weigh in on the three biggest topics of the past week in Maryland  sports. What does the addition of Notre Dame mean to the ACC and to Maryland? Jeff Barker: For the ACC, it means a level of comfort - or at least as much comfort as any conference can have in an era in which so much seems to be changing. The comfort lies in knowing that the ACC is adding and not subtracting. And it's been able to add quality.

Maryland has lost its appeal with the NCAA over the eligibility of Sam Cassell Jr. “We've exhausted every option and made our best effort," Maryland coach Mark Turgeon said in a news release. "I'm very pleased with the work that our compliance staff put in on Sam's behalf. Obviously, we're very disappointed that he will be unable to attend the University of Maryland at this time and be a part of our basketball program. We will continue to support Sam and his family in any way that we can as they determine their next steps.

The NCAA is reviewing the initial eligibility of freshman Maryland basketball guard Sam Cassell Jr., according to a source familiar with the situation. The timetable for a decision is uncertain. Losing Cassell would be a blow to Maryland, which had counted him among a handful of players who comprise one of its best basketball recruiting classes in years. The class has the chance to make a swift impact on a Terps team that was depth-challenged and faded last season, finishing 17-15.

Sam Cassell Jr. was just 9 years old in the spring of 2002, but one particular memory from that time still resonates in his mind. “When [Maryland] won the national championship, the city of Baltimore was crazy,” Cassell recalled. “I just remember watching at my grandmother's house, the whole tournament.” Cassell decided at some point during his childhood in West Baltimore that he wanted to play basketball for the Terps. With his famous father as his guide - and semi-regular brushes around town with Juan Dixon and other basketball stars - Cassell was confident that he could reach his goals.

Two days after announcing his (re)commitment to Maryland, Sam Cassell Jr. made it official with the Terps. On Monday night, Cassell signed his letter of intent to attend Maryland, the school announced. The three-star prospect previously said he would play for the Terps on Saturday at the Capital Classic. “I just think Maryland is the place to be," Cassell said in a news release. "It's close to home so all my family and friends can see me play, because I've been away from home for the last two years.” Said Maryland coach Mark Turgeon : "Sam is a combo guard with the ability to score the basketball at three different levels - at the rim, in the mid-range and from 3-point range.

BaseballReds: Recalled OF-1B Eric Anthony from a rehabilitation assignment at Triple-A Indianapolis. Optioned former Orioles OF Curtis Goodwin to Indianapolis.Yankees: Announced that OF Tim Raines will begin a three-game rehabilitation assignment at Triple-A Columbus.BasketballGrizzlies: Signed G Cuonzo Martin to a second 10-day contract.Rockets: Placed G Tim Breaux on the injured list. Activated G Sam Cassell (Dunbar).FootballJaguars: Signed unrestricted free-agent DT John Jurkovic, who had been with the Green Bay Packers.

NEW YORK -- Hakeem Olajuwon on Sam Cassell: "I do not look at him as a rookie. He's an experienced player. He's a smart player. He plays with a lot of confidence."Otis Thorpe on Sam Cassell: "I keep hating to call him a rookie because he definitely doesn't play like one."Rudy Tomjanovich on Sam Cassell: "I think he's courageous. I think he's fearless."Sam Cassell on Sam Cassell: "I'm just having fun. I'm enjoying it while I'm in there."Rookie ... first-year player ... non-veteran ... wild and crazy kid ... whatever you want to call him, he is one of those time-bomb players who can enliven ballgames.

Baltimore native Sam Cassell Jr. discusses his commitment to Maryland with Capitol Hoops after the Capital Classic on Saturday in Alexandria, Va.

Before the Capital Classic's fourth and final all-star game tipped Saturday night, before the bands of fans hoping to catch a glimpse of Maryland's future crossed state lines to the high school best known for its “Remember the Titans” lineage, it was obvious one recruiting class' meet-and-greet would become a welcome party. Sam Cassell Jr., after all, had committed to the Terps once before. The guard had been shacked up in a hotel with four other players who'd done the same in writing.