Maryland men’s basketball remains winless in conference play, falls 64-54 to Oregon

Photo courtesy of Grayson Belanger/Maryland Athletics.

In a season full of offensive struggles, Maryland men’s basketball may have reached its lowest point against Oregon.

The Terps shot 27.7% from the field in a 64-54 loss to the Ducks in the first game of their full Big Ten slate on Friday at the Xfinity Center in College Park. Maryland’s 54 points mark a season low, and its field goal percentage is its second-lowest this season.

“We didn’t score enough points, we didn’t make enough free throws and we didn’t shoot the percentage that you need to shoot to win a Big Ten game,” coach Buzz Williams said.

The Terps’ offense, which ranks second-to-last in the Big Ten in field goal percentage at 41.3%, has often stagnated, especially in the first half of games. In those moments, Maryland typically turned to its leading scorer Pharrel Payne.

Without the star big man – Payne missed his third consecutive game with a knee injury – the Terps couldn’t claw out of their early rut.

Maryland shot 9-for-33 from the field in the first half and converted only four of its 18 3-point attempts.

Guards Darius Adams and Diggy Coit, Maryland’s second and third leading scorers and the Terps’ go-to offensive options in Payne’s absence, combined for nine points on 2-for-8 shooting. Maryland got an offensive spark from an unlikely source instead.

Senior forward Solomon Washington, who averages 8.6 points per game on sub-40% shooting and is seen as a defense-first wing, led the Terps with 11 points – including four at the free throw line – in 19 first-half minutes. 

“[Washington’s] carrying a lot of invisible burden,” Williams said. “To do some of the things that we’ve always asked him to do, and then also do some of the things that we’re missing relative to injury.”

Even with a dismal shooting half, Maryland entered halftime only down 34-27 to a short-handed Ducks squad.

Oregon was without guard Jackson Shelstad, its second-leading scorer at 15.6 points a game. The junior is the Ducks’ primary ballhandler, averaging a team-high 4.9 assists per game. Oregon sorely missed his playmaking on Friday.

The Ducks turned the ball over seven times in the first half, while causing only three Terps turnovers. 

That disadvantage in the turnover margin was one of the main reasons Oregon didn’t run away with the game in the first half. The Ducks shot 50% from the field – over 20 percentage points better than Maryland – but the Terps kept the game within reach.

A three-pointer from forward Elijah Saunders, the first for either team in a sluggish second half and Saunders’ first points of the night, tied the game at 43 with 10:59 remaining. 

But as they had done all game, the Terps failed to capitalize and take the lead.

Oregon rattled off a 12-2 run, powered by consecutive threes from guard Jamari Phillips, and forced a Maryland timeout.

“It’s the game of basketball, teams are gonna make runs, so we just need to be more mentally focused,” Washington said. “Having the guts to just take on those runs, and just fight back.”

Washington led the Terps to a solid start to the second half, but once he went quiet, the rest of Maryland’s offense followed suit. The Terps regressed to shoot 28.1% from the field in the second half.

Payne’s absence has largely moved the focal point of the offense from the paint to beyond the arc. Maryland didn’t adjust well against the Ducks.

The Terps attempted a season-high 35 threes and sank only seven of them. Led by center Nate Bittle and his five blocks, Oregon owned the paint, outscoring Maryland 32-12 down low.

If Payne remains out as Maryland continues Big Ten play, the Terps will need to find a reliable second option to generate offense.