Terrapin Station
Fansided

Maryland Basketball: Terrapins Smacked by Michigan

By Wesley Brown

ORLANDO, FL - MARCH 16: Head coach Mark Turgeon of the Maryland Terrapins reacts in the second half against the Xavier Musketeers during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Amway Center on March 16, 2017 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
ORLANDO, FL - MARCH 16: Head coach Mark Turgeon of the Maryland Terrapins reacts in the second half against the Xavier Musketeers during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Amway Center on March 16, 2017 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Senior Day in College Park provided a chance for Maryland to pick up a much needed win over a ranked team, but that ship sailed early.

The game plan from Mark Turgeon seemed to be all about driving to the basket and creating contact. Throughout the first half, the Terrapins could not get a call to go their way on the offensive end.

A lack of switching the plan, matched with Michigan shooting 58% from the three-point line, resulted in a whopping 30-point deficit at the half.

Turgeon took all the blame for this loss saying; “It was just one of those days.” He added that no matter what button he pushed, it just didn’t work.

In the second half, Turgeon looked to add more pressure on the defensive end, but the Wolverines were able to just pass the ball around and drain the clock.

A key part of the second half was the play of Freshman Reese Mona. Coming into this game, Mona had played in just 30 minutes of basketball this season. In this game he had a total of 15 minutes, and adding four points, two rebounds, and a steal.

He provided a true spark off the bench that helped shrink the 30-point deficit at halftime, to an 85-61 final score.

Maryland finished with three players in double figures including Cowan (17), Huerter (12) and Fernando (12). The Wolverines were led by their three-point shooting, as they finished with 15 made from deep and an average of 48%. Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman also scored a career high 28 points, that included 22 in the first half.

This game pretty much wrapped up and hopes Maryland had of an at-large bid with a record of 19-12 (8-10). They will most likely need to win the Big Ten Tournament in order to make the NCAA Tournament.

That journey will most likely begin March 1st, in the 8/9 game at noon on BTN. Their two possible opponents include Wisconsin or Northwestern who are in contention for the ninth spot.