Fill out our Daily Orange reader survey to make our paper better


Men's Basketball

Syracuse basketball opponent preview: What to know about Maryland

Todd Michalek | Staff Photographer

Syracuse starting forward Matthew Moyer likely will face his toughest test of the season on Monday when he matches up on the Terrapins power forward, Justin Jackson.

Syracuse (5-0) faces its toughest challenge of the young season when it plays Maryland (6-1) Monday night in the Carrier Dome as part of the Big 10/ACC challenge. The Orange is coming off a 72-64 win over Toledo on Wednesday, while the Terrapins most recently beat New Mexico, 80-65, on Saturday.

Here’s what to know about UMD.

All-time series: Maryland leads, 5-3

Last time they met: Syracuse beat Maryland, 57-55, on Feb. 24, 2014. That win snapped a two-game losing streak for the Orange after it had started the year 25-0. Tyler Ennis (20 points) and C.J. Fair (17 points) led the Orange, while the Terps top scorers were Seth Allen (22 points) and Dez Sells (15 points).

The Maryland report: The first thing that jumps out about Maryland is that it has already played seven games. Like SU, the Terrapins are a young team with the three sophomores leading the team in minutes per game.



UMD is a balanced team, ranking 54th in adjusted offensive efficiency and 30th in adjusted defensive efficiency, per Kenpom.com. Maryland’s best win was a 79-65 triumph over Butler, but it also lost a game to St. Bonaventure in which it shot just 5-of-23 from deep.

loose_embed

Andy Mendes | Digital Design Editor

Maryland scores in a variety of ways, and excels at drawing fouls, getting 24 percent of its scoring from the free throw line, per Kenpom. UMD also succeeds at getting second-chance opportunities, ranking as the second-best team in the country in offensive rebounding percentage (the Orange ranks third).

The one weakness for the Terrapins is turnovers. They’ve averaged a whopping 17.1 turnovers per game. About one of every four possessions for the Terps ends in a turnover, per Kenpom, a mark that ranks near the bottom of the country. On the other side, they’ve only forced opponents — which have included lower-level opponents like Maryland Eastern Shore and Jackson St. — to just 11.6.

How Syracuse wins the game: Get more possessions. That means continuing to secure offensive rebounds while preventing Maryland from doing the same. It also means forcing UMD into turnovers. It might be a sloppy game between two young teams, and getting extra chances to score will be key for SU.

Kenpom odds: Kenpom gives Syracuse a 54 percent chance to win.

Stat to know: 50.5

More than half of Syracuse’s possessions have been ended by one of either of the starting guards, Tyus Battle and Frank Howard.

Player to watch: Anthony Cowan, guard, No. 1

Cowan leads the Terps with 15.3 points per game, 33.3 minutes per game, and he’s shooting at a 49.1 percent mark. He’s lived at the free throw line this year, making 6.7 free throws a game this year. He does have weaknesses from deep (32 percent) and has 25 assists to 20 turnovers so far.





Top Stories