Preview: No. 21 Maryland men’s basketball gets set for regular season finale against Penn State

No. 21 Maryland men’s basketball (20-10, 11-8) concludes the 2022-23 regular season on the road against Penn State (18-12, 9-10). 

The Terps are looking to finish the season strong after falling short to Ohio State, 73-62, in a rematch game Wednesday night. Maryland has one last shot to correct its road woes that have blemished an otherwise transcendent season. 

Maryland only led for the opening two-and-a-half minutes before Ohio State sparked a 12-0 run. From that point on, the Buckeyes held onto their lead as the Terps struggled to get stops on the defensive end. 

“Every time we got a stop we gave them an offensive rebound,” coach Kevin Willard said. “We just never could put two or three stops with two or three good offensive possessions together.” 

The game featured a drastic difference from the first time both teams met at the Xfinity Center in January. In that matchup, Maryland was on the positive end of large disparities in rebounding and free throw shooting. 

The Terps earned 33 looks from the charity stripe, converting 27 of them — both season highs. They also held a plus-14 advantage in rebounds. Graduate guard guard Jahmir Young even scored a season-high 30 points alongside 11 rebounds. 

Conversely, on Wednesday the Terps received 15 attempts from the free throw line and were outrebounded by eight. Young was also capped at nine points and only scored two in the second half. 

“I don’t know what sometimes guys have to do to deserve a foul on the road,” Willard said. “For Jahmir Young to not shoot a free throw, that’s something that’s been a big part of our road problems to be honest with you. The free throw disparity has been crazy on the road.”

Maryland is 1-8 when playing on the road in the Big Ten. 

Penn State enters its senior day as winners of four of its last five. In its last outing, senior guard Camren Wynter stunned Northwestern with a late go ahead three in overtime. Wynter scored a game-high 24 points and drilled four threes. 

Wynter is one of the many sharpshooters Penn State has within its arsenal. The Nittany Lions rank 10th among Division One schools in three-point shooting, shooting at a 39% clip from long range. They also lead the Big Ten by a large margin with 324 3-pointers made. Senior guards Andrew Funk and Seth Lundy are first and second in the conference in threes made and both shoot over 40%. 

But the man running the show is senior guard Jalen Pickett. Averaging 18.1 points (fourth in the Big Ten), 7.3 rebounds (tied for eighth in the Big Ten) and 7 assists per game (first in the Big Ten), he does it all for the Nittany Lions. 

Penn State ranks 15th in adjusted offensive efficiency, but just 130th in adjusted defensive efficiency. It shoots the ball extremely well, but opponents have also had success shooting against the Nittany Lions. Their opponents shoot an average of 34% from three. 

Maryland and Penn State last played Feb. 11, where the Terps defeated the Nittany Lions, 74-68. Young and senior guard Hakim Hart combined for 41 points, nine rebounds, eight assists and three steals. 

Five players scored in double figures for Penn State, but no other players scored a point. Freshman guard Kanye Clary led with a career-high 17 points off the bench. 

The game was close throughout its entirety with Penn State taking the lead at times and never going down big. But when it mattered most, the Terps rallied a 9-0 run late in the second half to take control.

Maryland is 4-2 in rematch games this season.

The game will tip off Sunday at noon and will take place at the Bryce Jordan Center.