The Maryland men’s basketball team is undefeated through head coach Kevin Willard’s first three games with the program.
Maryland dominated its first three nonconference matchups (Niagara, Western Carolina and Binghamton) and seemed to build more chemistry with each game. The schedule now becomes more difficult, with a game against Saint Louis (Nov. 19) next on the docket.
But for now, here are three takeaways from Maryland’s first three games:
1. Maryland’s defense is stifling.
Maryland’s defense has been hard for opponents to break down and has caused teams to struggle to make shots and retain possession of the ball. The Terps held Western Carolina to 27 percent shooting in a 71-51 win on Nov. 10 and Binghamton to 34.4 percent shooting in a 76-52 win on Nov. 15.
“I think we’ve come out with really good defensive intensity,” Willard said after the win against Binghamton. “These guys are sticking to what we want to do. From a game-plan standpoint, they’ve been really good. I think we set the tone early in games with our defensive intensity. So I’ve been really pleased.”
Maryland also boasts a full-court press that has provided easy points off turnovers and a half-court defense that has generated fast-break points. The Terps scored 17 or more points off turnovers and 17 or more fast-break points in each game.
“I feel like defense is a really important part of the game. Especially for us on nights … when we’re not shooting the ball as well,” sophomore big man Julian Reese said. “I feel like we can fall back on that and use that as fuel to do other things on offense as well.”
2. Julian Reese is making strides.
The 6-foot-9, 230-pound Baltimore native could take a leap this year after his freshman campaign. Reese had a slow start in the first game of the season against Niagara but showed what he is capable of in the wins against Western Carolina and Binghamton.
Reese only managed seven points in the 71-49 win against Niagara Nov. 7. However, he bounced back with career-high 19-point performances in the next two games, including his first career double-double with 19 points and 12 rebounds against Western Carolina Nov. 10.
“This is the way he practices every day. This is what I see every day in practice. So this is not surprising to me,” Willard said after the win against Binghamton. “I do think he should have more assists. I think he’s got that ability.”
Reese has caught Willard’s eye before the season began. The coach believes Reese will be a significantly better player than he was last year.
“I think Julian Reese by far has impressed me the most. I’ve challenged Julian tremendously on and off the court. I think [assistant coach Grant Billmeier] has been great for him,” Willard said. “But Julian has answered the bell. He’s been phenomenal in practice. … The player I saw last year compared to the player people are going to see this year is night and day.”
3. Maryland is not a 3-point shooting team.
Maryland shot plenty of threes in its first few games but rarely knocked them down. In 2021, Maryland was not a good 3-point shooting team, either, shooting only 32.6 percent from three (12th in the Big Ten) on its way to finishing with 221 threes.
After shooting 45 percent from three against Niagara, the Terps’ 3-point percentage dropped in their next two games. They shot 10.5 and 20 percent against Western Carolina and Binghamton, respectively.
“I am starting to get a little worried,” Willard said of the 3-point shooting. “Our issue is that they all can shoot the basketball, so we’re unfortunately settling every once in a while. When you have great shooters they think they can make every shot, and I think we’re settling a little bit for the first shot.”
On the other hand, the Terps’ offensive strengths are transition points and points in the paint. Maryland only scored 26 points in the paint against Niagara, but since then they have posted more than 45 points in each of the past two games.
“It’s definitely a confidence booster knowing we can do that,” Reese said. “We can fall back on that when our shots aren’t falling from outside.”
Photo Credits: Kenya Allen/PressBox