Trip To Ohio State Next For Streaking Terps

No. 7 Maryland (22-4, 12-3 Big Ten) continued to win Feb. 18th, making it nine straight victories, by defeating Northwestern (6-19, 1-14) 76-67 in College Park. A loss by Penn State to Illinois the same night gave the Terps a two-game lead atop the Big Ten standings.

When it looked like things couldn’t get any better for Terps’ sophomore forward Jalen “Stix” Smith, they did in the nine-point win over the Wildcats. Smith fell one rebound shy of Maryland’s first 20-point, 20-rebound game since Joe Smith accomplished the feat 25 years ago.

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Smith had 10 points and five rebounds in his first six minutes of action and finished with 22 points and a career-high 19 rebounds. It was Smith’s ninth straight double-double and 17th of the season, which is tied for fourth nationally. Smith was able to reach double-double status in just 13 minutes of playing time. He also added two blocks and two steals to his totals.

Fellow Baltimore native and Mount St. Joseph grad, Darryl Morsell, also had a strong game Tuesday night. Morsell stuffed the stat sheet on what was his 21st birthday, finishing with 13 points, seven rebounds, and a career-high seven assists.

Coming off of a heroic performance at Michigan State, Terps’ senior point guard Anthony Cowan Jr. scored 19 points against the Wildcats and passed Maryland legend Tom McMillen to move into eighth on the school’s all-time scoring list. Cowan also facilitated for his teammates efficiently, dishing out five assists and committing no turnovers. In total, the Terps had just five turnovers.

As a team, Maryland was excellent sharing the ball against Northwestern. The Terps had 17 assists on 25 made field goals and went into halftime with 12 dimes on 13 buckets.

Besides passing, Cowan also had a major impact on Maryland’s efficiency from the free throw line on Tuesday night. The senior went 9-for-11 from the charity stripe and the Terps finished 18-for-22 altogether.

Terps’ freshman forward Donta Scott continued his growth as a college player and turned in an efficient 12 points in just 19 minutes. He shot 5-for-8 from the field, including 2-for-3 from beyond the arc.

Maryland led the game from wire to wire and was up by as much as 14 at one point. But Northwestern showed resilience and wouldn’t go away, narrowing the deficit to as little as four points midway through the second half.

The Terps had four double-digit scorers in Smith, Morsell, Cowan, and Scott, but the Wildcats had three of their own. Freshman center Ryan Young had a strong performance in the post with a team-high 17 points and eight rebounds. Freshman guard Boo Buie scored 15 points, and sophomore forward Miller Kopp netted 13.

Going for its 10th straight win, Maryland now hits the road to go to battle Feb. 23 with an Ohio State team that has won five of its last six games and that the Terps defeated by 12 in College Park Jan. 7.

After starting the season red-hot and climbing all the way to No. 2 in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll, the Buckeyes hit a midseason skid, losing seven out of 10 games between Dec. 15 and Jan. 23.

Ohio State finally regained its footing recently and finds itself back in the Top 25 for the first time since dropping out about a month ago. Coincidence or not, the Buckeyes’ recent resurgence coincides with the departure of freshman guard DJ Carton, who temporarily stepped away from the program three weeks ago to address his own mental health issues.

Carton is averaging 10.4 points per game and shooting nearly 40 percent from beyond the arc this season. He has missed Ohio State’s last five games, and although he posted a cryptic social media message the other day that hinted a return could be coming soon, he is not believed to be back on the court for Sunday’s matchup with the Terps.

In Carton’s absence, Kyle Young, Luther Muhammad, CJ Walker, Duane Washington, and Andre Wesson have picked up the slack when it comes to scoring for the Buckeyes.

But the Buckeyes’ player Maryland has to always be most aware of when matching up with Ohio State is junior forward Kaleb Wesson, who’s considered to be not only one of the best players in the Big Ten conference but in the country.

Wesson is Ohio State’s leading scorer and rebounder with 14.1 points and 9.4 rebounds per game. He also averages more than a block per game while shooting 45.5 percent from the field, 72.3 percent from the free throw line, and 42.9 percent from beyond the arc. The 6-foot-9, 270-pounder had a team-high 15 points, nine rebounds, and three assists in the Buckeyes’ first meeting with Maryland this season.

Wesson and Smith are playing as well as any two bigs in college basketball right now and their matchup in the post on Sunday afternoon should be fun to watch. Smith’s double-double streak started after the win over the Buckeyes, but he did have a tidy 11 points, seven rebounds, and two blocks in the first game between these two teams.

Cowan was the hero in the 12-point home win over the Buckeyes. He finished with a game-high 20 points and also ripped down six rebounds. He attacked the basket aggressively in the second half to help the Terps pull away and finished 10-for-22 from the line.

Like Michigan State was, Ohio State is one of the rare teams in college basketball that is ranked in the top 20 in both adjusted offensive (19th) and defensive (14th) efficiency according to KenPom.

Ohio State is one of the best three-point shooting teams in the country and teams tend to shoot better at home, so Maryland’s perimeter defense will be at a premium in Columbus on Sunday.

The Buckeyes also rebound well and don’t allow easy points in the paint. If Scott can continue to step up and the Terps can find another player like Ricky Lindo Jr. or Chol Marial to assist Smith in the post, it will help Maryland immensely in its next outing.

Tip-off between Maryland and Ohio State is scheduled for 4 p.m. EST. The game will be broadcast on the Maryland Sports Radio Network and televised on CBS.