Terps Hoops Hopes To Finish Strong Ahead Of The Big Ten Tourney

Despite having their five-game winning streak snapped March 3 at Northwestern, the Terps still have a chance to finish the regular season on a high note and can still improve its seeding in the Big Ten Tournament.

Aaron Wiggins netted a career-high 26 points in Maryland’s loss to the Wildcats, but it wasn’t enough for the Terps to get the win, as they failed to execute down the stretch and dropped one on the road, 60-55.

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The Terps failed to score for the last two and a half minutes of the game, shooting 0-for-7 from the field during that stretch. Conversely, Northwestern finished the game on a 6-0 run over the last 90 seconds.

It was one of Maryland’s poorest offensive performances of the season, as Mark Turgeon’s team shot 42%. But it was also 15 turnovers that plagued the Terps against the Wildcats.

“It’s us,” Terps senior guard Darryl Morsell said after the game. “Can’t blame nobody else, we can’t blame coach Turgeon…I mean it’s us five on the court, we got to take care of the ball. We’re not running, we’re not in transition turning the ball over; it’s all in the half-court. So we’ve just got to do a better job of making reads and making the right plays.”

Morsell was Maryland’s only other player besides Wiggins in double figures, finishing with 14 points to go along with 8 rebounds and 5 assists. But it was a lack of complementary scoring that also hurt the Terps in their five-point loss.

Turgeon shortened his bench and played just three reserves against the Wildcats, but Maryland received zero points from its bench as Reese Mona, Jairus Hamilton, and Galin Smith were held scoreless. Starters Eric Ayala, Hakim Hart, and Donta Scott weren’t much better, shooting a combined 5-for-26 from the field for a combined 15 points.

The Terps will look to put that poor performance in the past as they gear up for their regular season finale against Penn State on Sunday, March 7.

Maryland lost to the Nittany Lions 55-50 in Happy Valley earlier this season but will now get to host them in College Park. Since beating the Terps, Penn State has lost five of its last seven games but is coming off of a big win at home over Minnesota.

With Penn State’s NCAA Tournament hopes out the window and Maryland hanging on to its potential bid by a thread, Sunday’s matchup will be between a team with nothing to lose and a team that’s desperate.

In the first meeting this season between these two squads, neither played particularly well. But Maryland received virtually no offense outside of a game-high 23 points by Ayala. Penn State’s starting backcourt of Izaiah Brockington and Jamari Wheeler gave the Terps fits, especially down the stretch, and senior center John Harrar dominated down low with 9 points and 8 rebounds, as the Nittany Lions were able to hang on narrowly at home.

Wheeler, Brockington, and Harrar are all coming off strong games against Minnesota, scoring 10, 12, and 14 points, respectively. But the Terps will also have to be cognizant of Nittany Lions guard Myreon Jones, who was held to just 2 points in the first meeting but has been red hot ever since.

Jones is Penn State’s leading scorer with 15.5 points per game this season and is averaging 17 points per in his last seven games since playing Maryland in early February.

The Terps will need their Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year Candidate, Morsell, as well as the improved defensive play of Wiggins at the top of the key to prevail on Sunday in order to thwart Penn State’s multifaceted attack. If they can do that and keep Harrar off the boards, the Terps could go into this week’s Big Ten Tournament with some momentum.

Speaking of the Big Ten Tournament, Maryland’s performance against Penn State as well as how Wisconsin closes its season will determine what seed the Terps have in the conference’s postseason.

If Maryland beats Penn State and Wisconsin loses to Iowa on Sunday, both teams will have a conference record of 10-10. However, with Rutgers defeating Minnesota on Saturday, the Scarlet Knights also have a 10-10 Big Ten record.

This three-way tie in the middle of the conference will be decided by tie-breakers, but if it turns out to be a three-way tie between Wisconsin, Maryland, and Rutgers, the Badgers would get the 6th seed because of a 2-1 record combined against Maryland and Rutgers. The Terps would then get the 7th seed and Scarlet Knights the 8th.

It boils down to two games to determine the Terps’ postseason fate — their own and Wisconsin’s. If Maryland wins and Wisconsin losses on Sunday, Maryland will be the 7th seed in the Big Ten tournament and not get to play a team that has already played a conference tournament game. Their opponent in that game could be Michigan State or Indiana depending on how things shake out. A win would set the Terps up with a quarterfinal matchup against Illinois.

If Wisconsin wins but Maryland loses, the Terps will be the 8th seed and have to also play either the Spartans or Hoosiers, but then would be in line to play top-seeded Michigan in the quarterfinals if they were to win.

Luckily for the Terps, since they hold the tie-breaker over Wisconsin, if both Maryland and Wisconsin lose on Sunday the former will get the higher seed (7th).

Maryland hasn’t exactly fared well in conference tournaments in recent years, but this would be a good year to right the ship with the Terps’ NCAA Tournament hopes likely on the line.

Turgeon’s team was building tons of momentum before the slip up against Northwestern, but a short memory can get the Terps right back on track. It all starts with beating Penn State in College Park.