Maryland vs. South Dakota State Preview

Posted By on March 18, 2016

In his first bracketology projection of the season in August, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi projected Maryland to be a one seed and play 16 seed North Florida. More than half a year, 25 wins and eight losses later, instead of a one seed, the Terps are a five seed.

On Friday, the No. 5 seed Terps will face the No. 12 seed South Dakota State Jackrabbits (26-7) in a NCAA Tournament South Region showdown in Spokane, Wash.

Though the Terps have struggled of late, dropping five of their last eight contests, the NCAA tournament presents them with a fresh start and a chance to avenge their difficulties.

What the Terps have to say

Forward Jake Layman: “We’re not going to lose, first of all. I’m excited. This is my last time playing in college, so I gotta go out there and just play as hard as I can and just leave it out on the floor.”

Guard Rasheed Sulaimon: “I’ve been in situations where I’ve made it to the Elite Eight, I’ve been in situations where I’ve lost in the first round, everybody is hungry. It’s everyone’s last chance, last opportunity, if we lose, if they lose, it’s their last game of the season. No one wants the season to end. We’ve just got to take no one lightly and just have 100 percent focus and just do whatever you can to win.”

Head coach Mark Turgeon: “I think you have five, six teams that are really really good and everybody is gonna say, these are the five or six that can win the national championship. Then you got teams like us that can get hot and are talented enough to get it done, so it is what it is, it’s going to be a great tournament for the fans. I just hope we stick around and be a part of it for a long time. We’ve been shooting for this all year guys; this is what we’ve been shooting for. We’re excited and looking forward to it.”

Time and TV info: Friday March 18, 2016 – 4:30 p.m. EST on TBS

Maryland players to watch:

Point guard Melo Trimble

All eyes will be on Trimble. After a phenomenal freshman season last year, Trimble has taken a step back this season, especially in conference play.

Field goal percentage Three point field goal percentage Turnovers per game
Last Season 44.4% 41.2% 2.5
This season 41.4% 33.5% 2.7
Conference play this season 37.5% 29.5% 2.9

Trimble has shown flashes of his freshman-year-self this season, but has not been able to produce consistent performances. He’ll have a chance to get back on track at the most crucial time. Trimble will match up with Jackrabbits point guard George Marshall.

Center Diamond Stone

Although Layman is a senior, and Stone is a freshman, projected as a possible lottery selection in the upcoming NBA draft, this may also be Stone’s last hurrah as a Terrapin. The Jackrabbits have three players who stand at 6-foot-9 or taller. Two of their forwards, Mike Daum and Ian Theisen, are 6-foot-9 and forward Connor Devine is 6-foot-10. Stone has clearly shown his offensive ability in the post, but has had difficulties at points on the defensive side of the ball and on the boards. The freshman will need to match up with the Jackrabbits’ taller players in the low post to help the Terps win.

Jackrabbits players to watch:

Forward Mike Daum

Daum may only play about 20 minutes per game and may not be in the starting lineup, but he will be the biggest threat to the Terps on Friday. The freshman forward averages 15.2 points per game and 6.1 rebounds per game. He doesn’t shoot a ton of threes, but he hits 45 percent of them. Maryland will need to be ready to defend Daum throughout the court.

Guard George Marshall

Marshall is a senior in his second season with the Jackrabbits since transferring from Wisconsin. He’s a solid shooter from the field, with a 40.1 percent clip from the field and a 37.2 percent mark from downtown. He’s the team’s second leading scorer as he averages 14.9 points per game. Marshall versus Trimble will be an interesting matchup.

Maryland vs. South Dakota State history: This is the first meeting between the two teams.

South Dakota State NCAA tournament history: This is the third time the Jackrabbits have made it to the Division I NCAA tournament and the first since 2013. In 2013, the No. 13 seed Jackrabbits fell to No. 4 seed Michigan in the first round 71-56. In 2012, as a No. 14 seed, they lost to No. 3 seed Baylor 68-60. Prior to moving up from Division II, the Jackrabbits competed in 24 NCAA tournaments.

Prediction: Maryland 73 South Dakota State 72

Maryland trails the Jackrabbits by six points at halftime andstorms back in the second half to win. The Terps will not commit a ton of turnovers but will lose the rebounding battle. Jake Layman and Rasheed Sulaimon defend the perimeter well and limit the Jackrabbits to a subpar shooting performance from three.

Alex Flum
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Posted by Alex Flum

Alex, a sophomore broadcast journalism major, joined The Left Bench in 2015 and will cover the Maryland Men's Basketball team this year. He is a native of the DC Area and a long-suffering DC Sports fan (especially Wizards and Redskins).