Maryland dips below .500 after an 84-66 loss vs. Indiana

Chase King
4 days ago
3 min read

Maryland Men’s Basketball (7-8, 0-4 Big Ten) hosted the Indiana Hoosiers (12-3, 3-1 Big Ten), where they fell flat in the second half, leading to an 84-66 loss.

The Maryland Terrapins entered their third straight Big Ten game, where they would once again be without their star forward Pharrel Payne.

The Terps kept the same starting lineup of Darius Adams, Andre Mills, Isaiah Watts, Solomon Washington, and Elijah Saunders.

“Whatever job you’re called to do is the one you have to try and succeed in,” said Saunders on Payne’s absence.

“Me, [George Turkson Jr.] and [Solomon Washington] have been splitting the time at that position and trying to do all we can to fill that role that [Pharrel Payne] takes in, and we’re still trying to improve at that.”

Entering the game, the Terps had over 29 three-point attempts in all three games they have played since Payne's injury.

Maryland started the game differently and swayed away from the three-point line early in the game, shooting only one three-pointer in their first 10 shots.

The Terps went 6-for-10 in those shots and got out to an early 14-9 lead.

Indiana is a team that lives by the three-point line, entering the game 12th in the nation with 10.7 three-pointers a game.

The Terps would hold their early lead as they limited Indiana’s three-point attack early, as Indiana made only one of their first 11 three-point attempts.

“Part of their potency on offense is just how many threes they make, so we were trying to influence who was shooting the three and then the type of contest on the three,” said Head Coach Buzz Williams.

Maryland would not be able to hold the lead, however, in part due to their sloppy play in the first half, which ended with them committing 11 fouls and 7 turnovers.

Indiana would lead 35-31 at the end of the half with 10 points off turnovers and 16-for-16 from the free throw line.

Indiana struck fire from three to start the second half, making five of their first seven from behind the arc.

Maryland’s offense would find less success in the paint, leading to them relying more heavily on threes in the second half as they did in prior games without Payne.

But Maryland would not be able to keep up with Indiana’s shooting, which helped Indiana build their lead. For the second straight game, Maryland finished the night shooting 20% or less from three, as they finished 5-for-26 from behind the arc.

Indiana’s Lamar Wilkerson was able to lead a 21-6 run after making three three-pointers by himself. The run gave the Hoosiers a 61-44 lead with 11:34 in the second half, which allowed them to cruise through the rest of the second.

Indiana was also able to take advantage of a smaller Maryland lineup without Pharrel Payne, out-rebounding Maryland 41-to-33 and hauling in 14 offensive rebounds, eight of those coming in the second half.

Maryland’s sloppy play would continue in the second half as the Terps finished with 21 fouls and 11 turnovers.

Indiana outproduced Maryland at the free-throw line, shooting 22-for-26 compared to Maryland’s 11-for-17.

With Payne out, Saunders has been forced into the five spot, where he had his best game of the season. He led the Terps with 16 points, 7 rebounds, 1 block and 1 steal on 5-for-8 from the field and 2-for-5 from three.

“I feel like I took advantage of the mix matches, I shot the shots that are ‘green-light shots’ as we would say in our program,” said Saunders. “So just let the game come to me and didn’t try to force it.”

Washington also stepped up for the Terps with 14 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 steals on 5-for-12 shooting.

Maryland now goes on the road, where they will play their next two games in Los Angeles, starting with UCLA on Saturday.

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