Score Predictions for No. 9 West Virginia vs. No. 8 Maryland

The West Virginia Mountaineers (19-14) meet the Maryland Terrapins (21-12) in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Thursday with tipoff set for 12:15 p.m. and will broadcast on CBS.

Schuyler Callihan: West Virginia 70, Maryland 66

These two teams are very similar. They can catch fire offensively at times but both go through their fair share of cold stretches shooting the ball. Defensively, I believe we're going to get one of West Virginia's best performances of the season. They've had a week to relax, refresh, and reset and the last time they had more than a few days before their next game, they ran right through Texas Tech at the Big 12 tournament.

The key in this one is to not go four or five minutes without making a field goal in the second half. In addition to that, WVU has to continue to be aggressive and take the ball to the rim to get their chances at the free-throw line.

I've got West Virginia erasing a double-digit halftime deficit, ultimately edging the Terps in the final minutes of the game to move on to the Round of 32.

Christopher Hall: West Virginia 75-70

West Virginia is playing its best basketball heading into the NCAA tournament. Leading scorer Erik Stevenson averaged 22 points in the last seven games, but it’s been the emergence of a healthy forward Emmitt Matthews Jr. in the back half of conference play that’s made a big difference for the Mountaineers, averaging 13.8 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.

Maryland has similar numbers to the Mountaineers with four Terrapins averaging double figures with guard Jahmir Young leading the group at 16.1 ppg. However, the key to Maryland’s success this season has been on the defensive end of the floor, holding opponents 63.2 ppg, the lowest since 1981-82 season.

This matchup has the appearance of a defensive battle, but officiating will dictate the physicality of the game. Regardless, WVU appeared to be dead in the water after an 0-5 conference start, but the Mountaineers fought their way back into the tournament. I believe West Virginia’s tough gritty effort is the difference in the first round and grabs the win 75-70.

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