Maryland has had a great inaugural B1G season in 2014-15. Coach Mark Turgeon and his No. 10 ranked Maryland Terrapins look to cap off the season with a win in Lincoln, Nebraska as they take on the Cornhuskers in their season finale. The Terps head into the game riding a six-game winning streak and they will look to extend that to seven games before playing in the Big Ten Tournament.
In the first matchup between the two teams, Maryland defended their home court with a 69-65 win in College Park thanks to 26 points and five assists from freshman standout Melo Trimble. Jake Layman and Dez Wells also chipped in with 14 points as the Terps improved to 22-5 and 10-4 in the Big Ten at the time. The key to Maryland’s victory against Nebraska was keeping their best player, Terran Petteway, to a 2-for-14 shooting performance that saw Petteway score his second-lowest point total of the season, as he had eight points.
As Maryland heads to Nebraska, the Cornhuskers will look to pull off the upset on Senior Day to record their 14th victory of the year. How good of a shot does Nebraska have at actually pulling off the feat though?
For Maryland, everything boils down to the play of Melo Trimble, Dez Wells and Jake Layman. The three of them combine to average 44.4 points per game. The trio accounts for 63.5 percent of the team’s season scoring average of 69.9 points per game! That season scoring average ranks eighth in the Big Ten conference and 60th nationally.
If Nebraska has any hope of shocking the Terps, they will have to keep Maryland’s ‘Big 3’ in check and force supporting role players such as Richaud Pack and Jared Nickens to hurt them. With a defense that ranks 45th nationally, Nebraska can indeed force Maryland into a grind-it-out slugfest, especially with the home crowd behind them.
Another factor to keep an eye on in this matchup will be Maryland’s ability to play on the road. Maryland boasts one of the nation’s best home records, however, they are just 5-4 on the road, 4-4 in conference. This includes losses to Illinois, Indiana, Ohio State and Iowa. In those four losses, Maryland has averaged 59.5 points per game while giving up an average of 76 points to their opponents.
Despite the Terps being ranked in the lower half of the Big Ten conference in scoring offense, their defense is a little stingier as they rank seventh in the Big Ten. Maryland allows opponents to score an average of 63.2 points per game, which ranks 48th nationally. The Terps have the advantage when they are on defense, as Nebraska struggles to score. The Cornhuskers rank 139th in the nation in scoring offense, as they put up 61.3 points per game.
While the Cornhuskers do struggle as a team offensively, Petteway is a player that has shown the ability to be able to carry the team offensively. He is a guy who can create something out of nothing on offense as the shot clock winds down. He averages 17.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game and has played some of his best basketball against Nebraska’s toughest opponents. Petteway scored 27 and 23 points in two meetings against Wisconsin and 32 against Michigan State.
Petteway does have help in the form of Shavon Shields who averages 14.9 points per game and grabs 5.9 rebounds a game. However, if neither of the two players can get it going for Nebraska, then the game could get ugly quick, as the Cornhuskers have very little scoring options outside of Petteway and Shields. Walter Pitchford is third on the team in scoring, chipping in 7.5 points per game.
Finally, Nebraska will have to keep Maryland off the free throw line and from hitting shots beyond the arc. Maryland shoots 75.4 percent from the charity stripe which ranks the Terps tied for 12th nationally. Maryland also shoots 37.3 percent from beyond the arc. The Cornhuskers have to be extra wary of three-point specialists Jared Nickens and Jake Layman as Nickens shoots 39.5 percent from downtown while Layman hits 38.9 percent of his treys.
While Maryland has nothing to play for in terms of seeding for the Big Ten Tournament or fighting their way into the NCAA Tournament, Maryland will not be taking it easy on the Cornhuskers. The Terps want to be playing their best ball heading into postseason play. Expect a close one in Lincoln, but ultimately, the combination of Trimble, Layman and Wells will be too much for the Cornhuskers to handle.
*Section Photo credit to Eric Francis, Getty Images; Featured Photo (above) credit to Bruce Thorson, USA Today Sports
