When Terrapins men’s basketball coach Mark Turgeon was a junior at Kansas in 1986, a crucial mistake cost the Jayhawks a berth in the national title game. With less than a minute remaining, they failed to secure a defensive rebound. A four-point loss followed.

So with the Terps struggling to rebound at points this season, Turgeon repeatedly used that anecdote to emphasize the importance of crashing the glass. But this week, as the Terps prepare to face Kansas, Turgeon has shied away from any reference to his playing days.

In front of the media Tuesday, Turgeon downplayed the significance of competing against his alma mater. Thursday in the Sweet Sixteen, the No. 5-seed Terps face No. 1-seed Kansas in Louisville, Kentucky. Turgeon said he hates facing his old team. He’s focused on the game, not the school.

He couldn’t avoid the questions, though. Seconds after the Terps advanced to the Sweet Sixteen on Sunday, he was asked about the matchup against Kansas. Yesterday, he even explained his path to the Jayhawks.

And today, he’ll face the school that helped shape him into the man he is today with a shot at the Elite Eight on the line.

“We know Coach wants Kansas,” forward Robert Carter Jr. said. “He’s always talking about how he made it to a Final Four and how great of an experience that was for him.”

Turgeon grew up in Topeka, Kansas, and excelled in high school. He starred for back-to-back state champions and was part of an undefeated season. But as an undersized point guard he received little attention from Division I schools.

His high school coach, Ben Meseke, arranged a meeting with then-Kansas coach Larry Brown, and Turgeon worked his way onto the roster.

“I was down on my knees begging coach Brown to take me,” Turgeon said. “That’s what it came down to.”

Turgeon’s stories about his playing days only extend so far, though. Sophomore Melo Trimble plays point guard, Turgeon’s position, but he’s never seen video of Turgeon directing the Jayhawks offense.

“That’s what’s funny,” Trimble said Tuesday. “I haven’t seen clips of him play, but I have seen pictures.”

Turgeon became the first Jayhawk to play in four NCAA Tournaments and was a captain his junior and senior seasons. After graduating, Turgeon immediately returned to the program as an assistant coach.

While a national championship eluded him as a player, he was part of the 1987-88 national championship team.

As a player and then as a coach, Turgeon spent nine consecutive seasons at Kansas. He was part of eight NCAA Tournament teams and worked with two legendary coaches — Brown and North Carolina coach Roy Williams.

“He always talks about his mentors,” Carter said. “His mentors are the guys who helped him be who he is today.”

Yet this week, Turgeon hasn’t talked about his time at Kansas, Carter said. And the rebounding story? Turgeon last referenced that Final Four game Feb. 18 after the Terps lost, 68-63, to Minnesota.

Thursday won’t be Turgeon’s first game against Kansas, the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament. At Texas A&M, Turgeon faced Kansas a handful of times. The Aggies, then a member of the Big 12, regularly played the Jayhawks during the season.

But Thursday is different. Turgeon has never faced the Jayhawks in the NCAA Tournament with the season hanging in the balance.

The heightened pressure doesn’t faze Turgeon, though.

“I’d rather play them in a national championship game than Sweet Sixteen game, but here we are so we’ll play it,” Turgeon said. “It is what it is.”