No. 8 Maryland men’s lacrosse’s recent offensive sputter has Tillman searching for solutions

Franklin Zessis
2 days ago
2 min read

In the first quarter of Maryland men’s lacrosse’s contest against Ohio State, it executed a near-perfect quarter.

The Terps scored on over half of their shots on goal and boasted five different scorers. But their offense struggled the rest of the game.

No. 8 Maryland scored just twice in the final three quarters of regulation and required an overtime winner from defender Riley Reese to notch a victory. The result has left coach John Tillman questioning “pretty much everything” on offense.

“So definitely [looking at] some different drills, tempo of the drills, the amount of the drills,” Tillman said. “What was our technique? Where do we put the ball? What was our decision making like? … all those things are definitely things that we're going to rip apart and figure out how we can be better.”

Tillman has stated throughout the season that Maryland’s offense is at its best when the ball is moving and multiple players are involved. The first quarter highlighted that, as three of Maryland’s five goals were assisted.

But Maryland’s offense slowed down in the following quarters. Part of the reason was better play by Ohio State goalie Caleb Fyock, and another part was Ohio State’s zone defense. The specific problems with the zone defense arose when Maryland got organized in its six-on-six offense — something Tillman calls the “settled offense.”

Maryland’s head coach noted that he wanted the team to get the ball upfield faster and make better substitutions when the ball is across midfield. Tillman stated that there were a couple of times when the Terps took 50 seconds to clear and make proper substitutions, leaving the team with about 30 seconds remaining on the shot clock.

The result kept Maryland in a slow-paced offensive rhythm, leaving little time to find a quality shot.

“Everybody looks at where you're vulnerable, and it's a copycat world,” Tillman said. So we'd be foolish to think that we're not going to see zone again.”

Tillman said he also wants the offense to play with more tempo, stating he not only wants faster clears and substitutions but wants the team to explore more transition opportunities. He specifically pointed to Reese’s overtime winner as Maryland was able to get favorable transition numbers upfield and create an open look.

That tempo will be crucial in Maryland's next contest as No. 19 Rutgers plays a 10-man ride — a style Tillman said is similar to a full-court press in basketball.

Tillman noted that the style of play by Rutgers, coming off a 13-10 loss against Michigan, will need to be countered with a faster tempo. He noted that Michigan flipped the game in the Scarlet Knights’ most recent contest when the Wolverines scored three quick goals in the third quarter.

“They're unique because they do it a lot more than most teams,” Tillman said. “So we've spent the first two days definitely addressing that.”

Maryland and Rutgers will meet on Saturday with the game set for a 6 PM start inside SECU Stadium.

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