Maryland Men's Basketball Vs. Penn State Preview
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The Maryland Terrapins men's basketball team returns home after a two-game road trip in Los Angeles, looking for their first Big Ten conference victory against Penn State on Sunday.
It's been a rough two-month stretch for the Terps (7-10, 0-6 Big Ten); they've only won two of their past 10 games and are searching for answers to climb out of this hole.
Will Sunday be the day the Terps end their four-game losing skid and earn their first conference win of the season?
Let's take a look at the opponents....
Game Details:
When: Sunday, January 18th
Where: Xfinity Center in College Park, Maryland
Tipoff: 12:00 p.m.
How to watch: Big Ten Network
Penn State Key Stats
Record: 9-8 (0-6 Big Ten)
Head Coach: Mike Rhoades
Leading Scorer: Kayden Mingo- 14.9 points per game
Leading Rebounder: Ivan Juric- 4.4 rebounds per game ( 3 DRPG & 1.4 ORPG)
Leader in Assists: Kayden Mingo- 4.5 assists per game
Points Per Game: 77.1 (T177th in the country)
Team FG % Per Game: 47.2 (T87th in the country)
Turnovers Per Game: 9 (T12th in the country)
Recent Stretch: Losses in last four games, and joins Maryland and Northwestern as the only teams in the Big Ten Conference without a conference win.
Players To Watch:
Penn State Guard- Freddie Dilione V
Dilione V is one of, if not the, Nittany Lions' top versatile scorers. He can create space and scoring opportunities for himself off the dribble well. He's crafty and uses his 6'5" size to his advantage, whether that's scoring himself or even finding his teammates. However, Dilione V is questionable after sustaining an ankle injury on Wednesday against UCLA.
Maryland Guard- David Coit
Coit was huge in Maryland's Tuesday night matchup at USC. He scored 30 points, shooting 50% from the field, and hit four threes. Coit has had dominant outings where he's shouldered the burden on offense for the Terps (31 points vs Michigan on Dec. 13th) and (41 points vs. Mount St. Mary's on Nov. 19th). For Coit, it's all about staying consistent with his scoring production for a struggling offense because he has evident talent as a three-level scorer.
History vs. Penn State
Sunday will be the 34th matchup between Maryland and Penn State. Maryland leads the all-time head-to-head series 18-15, winning the most recent meeting last year on the road at University Park, 68-64. The Terps have been dominant at home against the Nittany Lions, posting an 11-2 record at Xfinity Center. The last time Maryland lost to Penn State at home was in the 2020-21 season, after the Nittany Lions finished the game outscoring the Terps 30-11.
Final Take
It's short and straightforward this time around, folks: FIND A WAY TO WIN!
Two programs that are both winless in the conference will earn their first victories come Sunday, while the other will remain frustrated and winless.
Hopefully, Buzz Williams and the Terps are on the winning side of this.
More from Maryland On SI
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Jaden's sports journalism career began at the College of Southern Maryland from 2022-2023, where he was brought in to cover baseball, softball, basketball, soccer, and volleyball at CSM. In late 2023, he began interning at the University of Maryland Athletics Department as a contributing writer to help develop feature stories and game recaps. He also creates his own sports media content on professional Washington teams with LegacyMaker Sports Network.