Terps find their energy in upset win
Maryland uses patience on offense to top sixth- ranked Badgers
The emotion in the Maryland men’s basketball team’s postgame celebration was palpable, as players engulfed coach Mark Turgeon in a raucous locker roomscrum.
Over the past twoweeks, the Terps’ energy has been a steady crescendo in each game. After a double- digit home loss to Rutgers, Turgeon challenged every member of his team — from players to assistant coaches to media relations staff — to raise their vitality while playing in empty arenas. And on Monday night, Marylandwas active throughout its game at Kohl Center and broke through, picking up its first conference win of the season and the first victory over a top- 10 team since 2016.
“We had great energy all night,” Turgeon
said. “We’ve had great energy since the Rutgers game. We have to stick together. This is who we are. We’re in the best league in the country and every night is going to be a battle, so we’ve got to have energy on game night and we had great energy tonight.”
From crisp late- game offensive execution to a holiday road trip that brought the teamcloser, here are three takeaways from Maryland’s 70- 64 win over No. 6 Wisconsin onMonday night.
Maryland remained patient on fense andwas ultimately rewarded.
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At one point during a first- half offensive possession, Turgeon could be heard animatedly shouting, “Switch sides!” as he continued to push his players to move the ball on offense.
It’s been a focal point since the team’s loss to Clemson three weeks ago, in which Turgeon said afterward that the offensive performance was one of the most selfish he’s seen as a coach.
The Terps got off course from the offensive philosophy midway through the game, with a stretch of 11 consecutive missed shot attempts spanning late in the first half into the early minutes of the second. But Maryland regrouped, began to move the ball and used its speed to drive to the basket and make well- timed kickout passes when dribble penetration drewWisconsin defenders into the paint.
Maryland played its biggest with its smaller lineups.
The Terps have been at a clear size disadvantage in some of their recent conference games but Turgeon has seemed to embrace it. The rotation that finished Monday’s game included sophomore forward Donta Scott, who stands at 6feet 7, anda quartet ofguardsurrounding him— seniorDarrylMorsell( Mount Saint Joseph), juniors Eric Ayala and Aaron Wiggins and sophomoreHakimHart.
Many of Maryland’s lineups, while featuring offensive versatility, have ceded several inches of height, but it didn’t impact the defensive effort against Wisconsin. Morsell, essentially playing at the forward position, battled with Wisconsin’s frontcourt all night, holding his ground and impeding passes to the post.
A five- day road trip took Maryland away from College Park for the holidays but brought the teamcloser together.
Turgeon was quick to reveal in his postgame comments that he wasn’t initially a fan of how the Big Ten Conference scheduled the team’s last two games, with a Christmas Day game at Purdue and agameatWisconsin three days later keepingMaryland on the road throughout the holidayweekend.
But in the aftermath of a key win early in the season, Turgeon reflected on the time away from College Park and said it was beneficial, allowing the team the opportunity to bond after the coronavirus pandemic cut into much of its time in the spring and summer.
From team meals to “NBA 2K” video game tournaments to a Christmas celebration after the Purdue loss that featured family from every member of the team sending heartfelt messages in a video, Turgeonandplayerswere grateful for the extra time spent together.
“Just being able to bond through that, it kind of takes ourmindoff of basketball, and we get to know each other,” Ayala said. “I think that helps us in our chemistry on the court, just being able to communicate, taking constructive criticism in the right way. Somebody says something, player- wise, we know that it’s for the best of the team and nobody is just getting on each other.
“I think that trips like this build that comfort level around each other, even with the coaches, seeing them every day, we kind of build a bond and it’s just us out there.”