Maryland men’s basketball took ‘home court advantage’ to another level

No. 21 Maryland men’s basketball finished its home conference slate unscathed after defeating Northwestern 75-59 on senior day.  

In coach Kevin Willard’s first season, the Terps accumulated a program record 10 wins in Big Ten games played at the Xfinity Center. No other team in Maryland’s conference is undefeated at home in Big Ten games. However, the Terps are a completely different team on the road, as they’re 1-7 in away conference games. 

“It’s hard to win on the road in this conference,” Willard said. “Nebraska, I think it was a four o’clock game and they had 15,000 people and were 5-9 in conference. That doesn’t happen in any other conference.”

In league play, Maryland is averaging 74 points per game at the Xfinity Center, but just 60 points in opposing team’s arenas. A large reason why is its shooting, as the Terps shoot 49% in College Park but see a 10% decrease on the road against Big Ten foes.

Home court advantage is a big deal in basketball, especially in the Big Ten. For the 46th straight season, the Big Ten led all Division One conferences in attendance. During the 2021-22 season, Big Ten arenas saw an attendance total of over a million more than second place Big 12. 

The Big Ten is a different animal. Big crowds, ruthless student sections and distracting noise fill their arenas like no other conference. It creates a daunting task for a visitor on any given night.

Teams playing on their home court feed off their crowd and the endless cheers they receive after a highlight play. With the Xfinity Center ranking second in the Big Ten with a capacity of 17,950, the Terps play in one of the most cheerful home crowds. 

“It was loud,” Northwestern coach Chris Collins said. “They were getting after it and I’ve always enjoyed playing here. You know, it’s a hard place to play but I love playing in tough venues. And this one ranks up there. It’s right up there with the best I’ve been in through my years.”

This season, Maryland played in front of three sellout crowds and saw a near-4,000 increase in attendance. It was also the first time the Terps had three sellouts at the Xfinity Center since the 2016-17 season. 

Following the win over Northwestern, Willard made sure his players thanked the fans as he led them to the student section to hand out high fives. Several players even held up a heart with their hands to show the love they have.

“I just think about the crowd,” senior guard Don Carey said. ‘We got one of the best crowds in the country. Not being able to play in front of them at home is tough. So I was just blowing them a kiss to show them how I appreciate them.”

Maryland’s historic success at home can be directly attributed to the thousands of students and fans that come out and support every game. 

That being said, it’s normal for great teams to struggle on the road, especially in the Big Ten. 

Maryland will close out the regular season with two conference games on the road against Ohio State and Penn State, hoping to find even a slimmer of the success it had at home.