Preview: Maryland men’s basketball gets set for home finale against No. 21 Northwestern

On senior night, Maryland men’s basketball (19-9, 10-7 Big Ten) will take on No. 21 Northwestern (20-8, 11-6 Big Ten) as it looks to close out the season undefeated at the Xfinity Center in conference play. 

Maryland is currently 9-0 in Big Ten games at home, while no other Big Ten team is undefeated at home in conference play. A win would be the first time in program history it reached 10 conference wins at home.

“Like coach always says, prepare ourselves the best,” senior forward Donta Scott said. “Just step on the court and give it our all. And I feel like you can’t just lie down in the Big Ten. From playing number one to playing whoever, at the end of the day it’s someone coming into your gym, trying to take over what you got going on.”

Although Maryland sits in the middle of the Big Ten in terms of field goal percentage and second-to-last in three-point percentage, the Terps used their hot shooting to soundly defeat Minnesota at home, 88-70 Wednesday night.

Maryland guided an impressive start shooting 73.1% in the first half, its best shooting first half since 2017 against Illinois. With seemingly everything going through the bottom of the net, Maryland went on a 25-4 run after being tied 20-20 in the first half.

“I think at one point we were shooting 30-for-40,” coach Kevin Willard said. “Which I’ve never seen, so I was just happy that the ball was going in the hoop, to be honest. I really wasn’t that worried about anything else.”

The Terps never looked back and finished the game shooting 68.1%, their sixth-highest percentage from the floor in school history. 

All five starters for Maryland scored in double figures but it was the trio of sophomore forward Julian Reese, senior guard Hakim Hart and Scott that showed up when the Terps needed a bucket. The big three scored 59 of Maryland’s 88 points.

“At any given night anyone can go out and make shots,” Scott said. “I feel like everyone on this team is capable of stepping up to the plate and doing whatever we need, whether that’s defense or scoring.” 

Hart did it all for the Terps with his efficient scoring, calculated playmaking and lockdown defense. He tallied a stat line of 20 points, six assists and four steals. 

Scott bounced back after struggling offensively against Nebraska with 18 points. Reese recorded a double-double with 21 points and 12 rebounds. He has finished in double figures in 11 out of the last 13 games.

“Julian’s one of the best big guys in the league,” Willard said. “I said it last time, I don’t think I’d trade Julian for anybody. He’s matured, he understands what he’s doing.”

Northwestern enters the matchup winning five of its last six games, including back-to-back wins against No. 5 Purdue and No. 17 Indiana. The Wildcats have hit their stride but on Thursday they fell to Illinois after leading by 18 at halftime. 

Northwestern couldn’t stop senior guard Terrance Shannon, who scored 24 of his 26 points in the second half. Northwestern senior guard Boo Buie had a career-high 35 points in the loss.

Offensively the Wildcats are led by their guards, with Buie ranking fifth in the Big Ten averaging 17.6 points per game and scoring 20 or more in four straight games. Senior Chase Audige is the other beneficiary, averaging 14.5. 

As a team though Northwestern is inefficient shooting the basketball. Its 40% shooting from the floor ranks last in the Big Ten and 327th among Division One schools. 

Northwestern’s biggest strength is its defense, where it ranks 19th in adjusted defensive efficiency, per Kenpom. Its defense is adept at forcing turnovers and blocking shots. 

The Wildcats force an average of 14.7 turnovers every game. Audige is a big contributor to that number with 2.5 steals per game, ranking second in the conference. As a unit, their 237 steals is second in the Big Ten only behind Rutgers.

Tip-off on Sunday is set at noon.