After losing Big Ten games on Thursday in which they were favored, Maryland and Nebraska are feeling the heat.
When the Terrapins (13-5, 3-4) host the Cornhuskers (12-5, 2-4) on Sunday afternoon in College Park, Md., it will be a tight turnaround with both teams urgent for bounce-back wins.
“I like this short turnaround to hopefully get this bad taste out of our mouths and get back out on the floor and compete again,” Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg said after Rutgers ended the Cornhuskers’ 20-game home winning streak, 85-82.
Now Nebraska’s focus turns to fixing its issues on the road. The Cornhuskers have gone 0-3 in Big Ten road tests, losing by an average margin of 27.7 points.
Nebraska’s defense has been woeful in the defeats, surrendering 54.4 percent shooting, including 49.4 percent from 3-point range. Foes have hit 45 triples in the league losses, while the Cornhuskers have made 19.
That shortfall is daunting Sunday as Maryland starters Ja’Kobi Gillespie, Selton Miguel and Rodney Rice have combined to make 107 treys this season.
The Cornhuskers will counter with sharpshooters Brice Williams (18.9 points per game) and Connor Essegian (11.6), who are both shooting at least 40 percent from deep.
Maryland will try to make amends for a 76-74 loss in overtime Thursday at Northwestern, falling on a buzzer-beater by Nick Martinelli.
The Terrapins have been two different teams in the Big Ten, going 3-0 at home and 0-4 on the road, with none of the losses coming by more than six points.
With the most recent defeat, pressure is ramping up on third-year coach Kevin Willard who has a 4-20 record in conference road games.
“Unfortunately, we’re doing something different in every game,” Willard said. “What I can say is, these guys are battling and we’re in every game. And we’ll figure it out.”
With Derik Queen (15.8 points, 8.1 rebounds per game) and Julian Reese (13.2 points, 8.7 rebounds) the Terrapins should have an edge inside against the Cornhuskers.
The Terrapins lead the series 12-4 with wins the last six times the teams have played at Maryland, including last year when Reese had 15 points and 16 rebounds in a 73-51 romp.
–Field Level Media
