Jami Jurich
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Ohio State men’s basketball vs. Maryland: Game preview and prediction
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The Buckeyes are hoping to put a tough OT loss behind them as they open Big Ten play.
Ohio State hits the road on Wednesday to kick off Big Ten conference play against Maryland at the Xfinity Center in College Park, Md.
The Buckeyes (5-2 overall, 0-1 away) will need to recenter themselves after a dramatic overtime home loss to Pitt last Friday, which ended with a 3-point buzzer beater from Pitt’s Zack Austin to seal the Panthers’ one-point victory, 91-90.
Maryland has looked consistent all season, with their lone loss coming against No. 15 Marquette, 78-74.
OSU’s last matchup with Maryland (7-1 overall and at home) was somehow even more dramatic than last week’s game against Pitt. The Buckeyes beat the Terrapins, 79-75, in double overtime last February, in their only matchup of the 2023-24 season. It was Ohio State’s final win under then-head coach Chris Holtmann, who was let go just four days later.
The Terps are averaging 85.4 points per game while shooting 48.9 percent from the field.
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Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Against Pitt, the Buckeyes led for most of the game, and after shooting nearly 70 percent in the first half, they led by nine at the break. But a 15-0 Panthers run in the second half — a scoring drought which lasted seven minutes — shifted momentum, and while OSU led by five in the final 90 seconds of regulation, Pitt was able to hang on to force overtime.
Even in overtime, the Buckeyes had opportunities, leading by as much as six.
But it was once again a case of not capitalizing on free points, as costly missed free throws made the difference in the end, and Pitt managed to grab onto a one-point edge with a three from Zack Austin in the final second of extra time.
Still, it wasn’t all bad for the Buckeyes, despite the unfavorable outcome. They shot 51.7 percent from the floor and went 11-for-20 on threes.
Bruce Thornton led with 24 points, nine assists and three rebounds. He leads the team this season in points and assists, averaging 16.4 points and 6.3 assists per game. Freshman guard John Mobley Jr. is second in scoring, averaging 14 points per game, though he was just 2-for-7 against Pitt (however he also came up big with two critical threes).
Sophomore forward Devin Royal was good for 18 points against the Panthers, and he’s averaging 12.4 points per game and leads in rebounds with 7.4 per game. Senior guard Micah Parrish tacked on 15 points and shot 100 percent from three-point range (4-of-4). He’s averaging 11.1 points per game this season.
Meechie Johnson is also averaging double-digit shooting this season, with 10.6 points per game. He had a season-high five assists against the Panthers.
The Terps, for their part, are on a four-game win streak and have extended their home win streak against unranked opponents to 21. In their last outing, Maryland faced Alcorn State, who has yet to win a game this season, and won handily, 96-58. The 38-point win was the Terps’ fifth game so far this year with a 30-point or higher margin of victory.
Freshman center Derik Queen leads the team in scoring, averaging 16 points per game, and is second in rebounds and assists, with 7.9 and 2.6 per game, respectively. Queen has scored more than 20 points in four games so far this season, leaving him currently tied for the most by a Division I freshman.
Behind Queen, junior guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie is averaging 13.6 points per game and leads the team in assists (3.0 per game) and steals (1.7 per game). Also averaging in double-digit scoring are senior forward Julian Reese (13.3 points per game) and sophomore guard Rodney Rice (12.7 points per game). Reese also leads the team in rebounds with 8.3 per game.
Against the Braves, the Terps had five players with double-digit scoring: Queen led with 20, followed by Reese and Selton Miguel at 14, Rice with 12, and 10 points from Deshawn Harris-Smith. Reese, who finished last season with an All-Big Ten honorable mention, added 11 rebounds for his 25th career double-double.
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Photo by John McDonnell/ for The Washington Post via Getty Images
Maryland spent much of the offseason improving its roster depth, and the effort has been paying off so far.
It will be a tough matchup for the Buckeyes, though not an unwinnable one. But when games are expected to be close, fouls and free throws start to count, and it’s an area the Buckeyes have struggled.
Ohio State is averaging 19.1 fouls per game and is shooting 67.6 from the free throw line. Maryland, on the other hand, is averaging 15.6 fouls per game and shooting 73.5 percent from the stripe. The Terps could use this to their advantage, playing hard in the paint to draw fouls from a foul-prone OSU team, especially at a time when Maryland has been shooting well.
Ohio State also needs to avoid the free throw differential they’ve seen in previous games, most recently against Pitt (the Panthers were 23-for-30 from the foul line, while the Buckeyes shot just 19-of-29). They’ll also need to be wary of turnovers — Maryland has been aggressive in converting turnovers to points, which could be a thorn in the Buckeyes’ side.
Still, if the Terps are shooting well, Ohio State is shooting better than most teams in the country right now at better than 50 percent over the last four games. They lead the Big Ten and rank in the top 10 nationally in field goal percentage (60.6) and three-point shooting (44.8 percent). The Terps’ challenge, then, is to contain them, especially from long range.
Maryland has looked confident and composed all season, but the Buckeyes have shown glimmers of it too. The game looks to be a nail biter, but the Terps are typically excellent on their home court, so I expect them to win by a narrow margin when all is said and done.
ESPN BPI: Maryland 57.4%
Time: 6:30 p.m. ET
TV: BTN
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Jami Jurich via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The Buckeyes are hoping to put a tough OT loss behind them as they open Big Ten play.
Ohio State hits the road on Wednesday to kick off Big Ten conference play against Maryland at the Xfinity Center in College Park, Md.
The Buckeyes (5-2 overall, 0-1 away) will need to recenter themselves after a dramatic overtime home loss to Pitt last Friday, which ended with a 3-point buzzer beater from Pitt’s Zack Austin to seal the Panthers’ one-point victory, 91-90.
Maryland has looked consistent all season, with their lone loss coming against No. 15 Marquette, 78-74.
OSU’s last matchup with Maryland (7-1 overall and at home) was somehow even more dramatic than last week’s game against Pitt. The Buckeyes beat the Terrapins, 79-75, in double overtime last February, in their only matchup of the 2023-24 season. It was Ohio State’s final win under then-head coach Chris Holtmann, who was let go just four days later.
The Terps are averaging 85.4 points per game while shooting 48.9 percent from the field.
Preview
Against Pitt, the Buckeyes led for most of the game, and after shooting nearly 70 percent in the first half, they led by nine at the break. But a 15-0 Panthers run in the second half — a scoring drought which lasted seven minutes — shifted momentum, and while OSU led by five in the final 90 seconds of regulation, Pitt was able to hang on to force overtime.
Even in overtime, the Buckeyes had opportunities, leading by as much as six.
But it was once again a case of not capitalizing on free points, as costly missed free throws made the difference in the end, and Pitt managed to grab onto a one-point edge with a three from Zack Austin in the final second of extra time.
Still, it wasn’t all bad for the Buckeyes, despite the unfavorable outcome. They shot 51.7 percent from the floor and went 11-for-20 on threes.
Bruce Thornton led with 24 points, nine assists and three rebounds. He leads the team this season in points and assists, averaging 16.4 points and 6.3 assists per game. Freshman guard John Mobley Jr. is second in scoring, averaging 14 points per game, though he was just 2-for-7 against Pitt (however he also came up big with two critical threes).
Sophomore forward Devin Royal was good for 18 points against the Panthers, and he’s averaging 12.4 points per game and leads in rebounds with 7.4 per game. Senior guard Micah Parrish tacked on 15 points and shot 100 percent from three-point range (4-of-4). He’s averaging 11.1 points per game this season.
Meechie Johnson is also averaging double-digit shooting this season, with 10.6 points per game. He had a season-high five assists against the Panthers.
The Terps, for their part, are on a four-game win streak and have extended their home win streak against unranked opponents to 21. In their last outing, Maryland faced Alcorn State, who has yet to win a game this season, and won handily, 96-58. The 38-point win was the Terps’ fifth game so far this year with a 30-point or higher margin of victory.
Freshman center Derik Queen leads the team in scoring, averaging 16 points per game, and is second in rebounds and assists, with 7.9 and 2.6 per game, respectively. Queen has scored more than 20 points in four games so far this season, leaving him currently tied for the most by a Division I freshman.
Behind Queen, junior guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie is averaging 13.6 points per game and leads the team in assists (3.0 per game) and steals (1.7 per game). Also averaging in double-digit scoring are senior forward Julian Reese (13.3 points per game) and sophomore guard Rodney Rice (12.7 points per game). Reese also leads the team in rebounds with 8.3 per game.
Against the Braves, the Terps had five players with double-digit scoring: Queen led with 20, followed by Reese and Selton Miguel at 14, Rice with 12, and 10 points from Deshawn Harris-Smith. Reese, who finished last season with an All-Big Ten honorable mention, added 11 rebounds for his 25th career double-double.
Prediction
Maryland spent much of the offseason improving its roster depth, and the effort has been paying off so far.
It will be a tough matchup for the Buckeyes, though not an unwinnable one. But when games are expected to be close, fouls and free throws start to count, and it’s an area the Buckeyes have struggled.
Ohio State is averaging 19.1 fouls per game and is shooting 67.6 from the free throw line. Maryland, on the other hand, is averaging 15.6 fouls per game and shooting 73.5 percent from the stripe. The Terps could use this to their advantage, playing hard in the paint to draw fouls from a foul-prone OSU team, especially at a time when Maryland has been shooting well.
Ohio State also needs to avoid the free throw differential they’ve seen in previous games, most recently against Pitt (the Panthers were 23-for-30 from the foul line, while the Buckeyes shot just 19-of-29). They’ll also need to be wary of turnovers — Maryland has been aggressive in converting turnovers to points, which could be a thorn in the Buckeyes’ side.
Still, if the Terps are shooting well, Ohio State is shooting better than most teams in the country right now at better than 50 percent over the last four games. They lead the Big Ten and rank in the top 10 nationally in field goal percentage (60.6) and three-point shooting (44.8 percent). The Terps’ challenge, then, is to contain them, especially from long range.
Maryland has looked confident and composed all season, but the Buckeyes have shown glimmers of it too. The game looks to be a nail biter, but the Terps are typically excellent on their home court, so I expect them to win by a narrow margin when all is said and done.
ESPN BPI: Maryland 57.4%
Time: 6:30 p.m. ET
TV: BTN
LGHL score prediction: Maryland 70, Ohio State 65
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