No. 17 Maryland Men's Basketball vs Purdue Prediction, Preview
Mark Turgeon has to be furious with his team, losing their last two games against Big Ten opponents.
The Terrapins need to figure out a way to resolve their struggles when playing away from the Xfinity Center. Next up they will face Purdue (10-7) who are coming off a dominant 71-42 win against No. 15 Michigan State, one of the biggest upsets in their program's history.
HC Matt Painter
Painter has arguably been one of the best college basketball head coaches in the country over the last two decades. Since being hired as Purdue's head coach in 2005, he has a 331-166 record with the team. Not only that, he took the Boilermakers to 11 NCAA tournaments. Purdue was ranked as high as 23rd in the AP poll to begin the season but has not played to expectation with a 10-7 record.
F Trevion Williams
Williams is a quality player for the Purdue Boilmakers. In his sophomore season, he is leading the team averaging 11.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, and has a team best 58.5 field goal percentage. The 6-foot-9 250-pound big man has been a pleasant surprise but still leaves a lot to be desired making a team low 44.8 percent from the free throw line.
G Eric Hunter Jr.
The former three-star recruit from Indianapolis, Indiana has had an inconsistent season but is arguably Purdue's top scoring threat. He is current making around the team average in field goal percentage (41.6) and is second in points averaging 10.8 per game. He leads the Boilmakers with 51 assists through 17 games and has made the second-most 3-pointers (25) on the team.
C Matt Haarms
Haarms is Purdue's top defender averaging 2.2 blocks and 5.5 rebounds per game. The junior big man from the Netherlands is the biggest player on the team, standing a 7-foot-3 250 pounds.
Prediction
Maryland is a much better team when playing at the Xfinity Center in front of their home crowd. Both teams have battled through their inconsistencies to pull off double-digit victories on the season. Almost every game has been the same when they host any opponent. They will start off slow before pulling away with the lead in the second half to win the game.
