Maryland looks to end cold streak at Penn State in season finale

Maryland men’s basketball is set to close out its regular season tonight vs. Penn State with a chance to sweep the season series for the first time since the first season in the Big Ten. In order to do that, Maryland will need to pick up its first win in State College since Feb. 14, 2015, when Dez Wells, Melo Trimble and Jake Layman combined for 55 points on the road.

Maryland enters the weekend guaranteed to play on the first day of the upcoming Big Ten Tournament, though seeding could vary depending on the outcome of Sunday’s games.

Maryland enters Sunday tied with Rutgers at 12th in the Big Ten standings, though a win would move Maryland to 11th in the final standings and draw Michigan in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament. If Maryland loses against Penn State, the Terps will face Rutgers in the first round of the conference tournament with seeding to be determined. Rutgers would draw the 12 seed if they beat Ohio State, along with a Maryland loss.

Back in the first matchup in December, Maryland needed overtime to take down Penn State, 81-75, in College Park for the first conference win of the season, but neither team has been able to consistently find their groove since then.

Penn State won consecutive games after first-year head coach Mike Rhoades announced the dismissal of Kanye Clary, including an upset over then-12^th-ranked Illinois, but now will look to end a two-game slide after falling at Iowa then Minnesota. Senior guard Ace Baldwin leads the Nittany Lions with a team-high 14.2 points per game, but he’s also made a strong case for himself among the conference’s best defenders. Baldwin enters the weekend fifth in the country in steals per game (2.77), which ranks second among Power Six conference players. Meanwhile, former Georgetown and Maryland center Qudus Wahab has been able to find his groove with a team-high 7.5 rebounds per game. Nick Kern, Puff Johnson and Zach Hicks round out the starting five for a Nittany Lions team that struggled on the glass this season, giving the Terps a potential advantage on the road.

In a season where Maryland has been able to improve its play on the road with its three conference road wins good for the third-most in the conference, the Terps will have a chance to move to 5-3 in Quad Two games this season.

Donta Scott enters Sunday 11 rebounds away from passing Tom McMillen for eighth on the all-time rebounding list and 43 points away from passing Walt Williams for 14^th on the all-time scoring list.

Maryland looks for first win at Penn State since 2015 in regular season finale

Ahmed Ghafir