Maryland men’s basketball has delivered the gift of wins throughout December.
Maryland (10-2 overall, 1-1 Big Ten) has won the games it was supposed to in dominating fashion en route to a 4-1 December record.
The Terps are currently on a two-game win streak after defeating Saint Francis (Pa.), 111-57, on Dec. 17 and Syracuse, 87-60, on Dec. 21.
“I think the biggest thing is we’re passing the basketball really well,” head coach Kevin Willard said after the win against the Orange. “I think we ended up with 26 assists, could’ve been 36 assists. … What I loved about it was our defensive pressure I thought was great. Even when we missed shots, I thought our defensive intensity was really good.”
The Terps have one more nonconference matchup, against Maryland Eastern Shore on Dec. 28, but first, here are three thoughts about Maryland’s performance in December:
Maybe Maryland is a 3-point team?
Maryland isn’t an otherworldly team from 3-point range, but the Terps have been able to knock down shots consistently. Maryland has hit on 37.1 percent of its 3-pointers, good for fourth in the conference.
Transfers Selton Miguel, Ja’Kobi Gillespie and Rodney Rice have all played important roles in that regard. Miguel (44.8 percent), Gillespie (43.9) and Rice (35.2) are all shooting well from three.
There’s still a lot of basketball to be played, but no player shot better than 35.5 percent last season for the Terps. Maryland searched for consistent 3-point shooting in the portal this offseason, and the Terps look to have found what they were missing.
Enjoy Derik Queen while you can.
Freshman center Derik Queen’s draft stock continues to rise as the season progresses. The soon-to-be 20-year-old is ninth in scoring in the conference (16.8 points per game) and eighth in rebounding (8.3).
The 6-foot-10, 246-pound center is currently the No. 18 prospect and No. 1 center in the 2025 NBA Draft class, according to CBS Sports.
Queen has the second-most 20-point games by a Maryland rookie (five) and could tie or pass former Terp Melo Trimble (10) with more than half of the season remaining.
Can Maryland continue its performance in conference play?
Maryland has just played two conference games so far, so it’s important to see if the Terps can stay hot for the rest of the season.
Following the game against UMES, Maryland will face nothing but Big Ten opponents until March. The Terps have already played two league games, defeating Ohio State in convincing fashion (83-59) and losing a tight game at Purdue (83-78).
Maryland only played three nonconference opponents of note — Marquette, Villanova and Syracuse. The Golden Eagles in particular provided a measuring stick of where the Terps were early on in the season, with Maryland falling, 78-74.
The Big Ten schedule restarts with a road trip to face Washington and Oregon in early January.
“I’m loving where we’re at right now,” senior big man Julian Reese said after the Syracuse game. “We’ve got a Big Ten [win] under our belt already, but I feel like it was at home. We haven’t really faced any adversity in conference play. We’re going to have a real test in going out of town, staying out there for a couple days and just staying together. I feel like we’re ready right now, but over this [holiday] break we’ve got to stay together and don’t get too complacent.”
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