Since a Jahmir Young 3-pointer to ice the game against Illinois on Dec. 2, the Maryland men’s basketball team has gone winless.
Since starting the season 8-0, Maryland has cooled off and suffered its third straight loss when UCLA dominated, 87-60, in College Park on Dec. 14. The Terps also lost to Wisconsin on Dec. 6 and Tennessee on Dec. 11.
However, Maryland is still 8-3 and will have a chance to right its wrongs on Dec. 22 when it hosts Saint Peter’s. But first, here are three takeaways from Maryland’s last three games:
1. Maryland has begun slowly in its losses.
In its losses against Tennessee and UCLA, Maryland shot poorly from the floor to begin the game. The Terps shot 3-for-24 (13 percent) from the field in the first half against the Volunteers, then followed up that performance with an 0-for-8 start against the Bruins in the first five minutes, reminiscent of their 2-for-8 start against Wisconsin.
Maryland’s slow start against UCLA led to its largest halftime deficit since it was down by 30 against Michigan on Feb. 24, 2018. The 87-60 loss wound up being the Terps’ biggest home loss since a 104-72 loss against Duke on Jan. 3, 1998.
“We got off to another bad start and it just took the wind out of our sails,” Willard said after the loss to UCLA.
“I hope three or four days rest will help that,” Willard added on the slow starts. “We’ve played some really good teams. Tennessee struggled offensively against us, and Wisconsin struggled offensively against us. We’ve been playing pretty good. This was the first time all season that we haven’t a lot of energy on the defensive end and they just took advantage of it.”
2. Maryland is a resilient group.
Although Maryland is getting off to slow starts, the team does not quit until the buzzer sounds. The Terps were down by as much as 21 and 12 points against Tennessee and Wisconsin, respectively. In addition, Maryland’s biggest lead in each of those games was only one point.
But in each game, Maryland fought back to make the game competitive. Maryland tied the game in Madison at 45 with nine minutes remaining in regulation before Wisconsin was able to keep the Terps at bay.
Maryland also went on a 12-0 run in the second half to pull within single digits of Tennessee, only to come up short after Young missed a floater and a 3-pointer to tie the game in the waning moments.
The UCLA game was the only loss in which the opponent’s lead was insurmountable.
“I love this team. This doesn’t change anything. Every once in a while you get your ass kicked. They’ll bounce back,” Willard said. “… This was the first time I saw these guys and how they reacted to adversity. I was trying to figure out what buttons to push with certain guys because I haven’t had to do that yet.”
3. Maryland needs more production from its bench.
The reserves for Maryland have to be more consistent. The Terps’ bench was outscored in the losses against Tennessee (24-6) and Wisconsin (15-10). The reserves were able to outscore UCLA (28-27), but they played more minutes than usual because of how big the Bruins’ lead was.
But when Maryland is struggling to shoot the ball — as has been the case recently — there is a need for someone who can come in to score consistently. Junior guard Ian Martinez could be that sixth man the Terps are looking for. Martinez finished with a team-high 18 points off of the bench against UCLA.
“[Martinez] getting more minutes will probably be the norm going forward,” Willard said. “I think one of the reasons is we have been struggling defensively, too, to start games. He’s been practicing great.”
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