This year marks the first time the Maryland Terrapins men's basketball program will take on Grand Canyon University. The Terps (25-8) enter the NCAA tournament as the fourth seed. Their opponent, the Lopes (26-7), are the West Region's 13th seed.
Coach Kevin Willard guided his side to a strong 14-6 record in Big Ten conference play. They are, furthermore, winners of four of their last five matchups. Wins include victories over top competition, such as Illinois and Michigan. Their last loss recently came by a single point, following a game-winning drive by Wolverine's Tre Donaldson.
Many believe that the bottom left portion of the bracket is the equivalent of the 'group of death.' The Terps faithful, however, will want to see their team advance past the early stages of March Madness. It will be up to coach Willard to ensure that this roster is poised and composed to avoid a double-digit upset.
Maryland is led by Derik Queen, who averages 16.3 points per game. His 9.0 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per contest also make him a frontcourt force to be reckoned with. When paired with Julian Reese, the senior forward also chips in an equal 9.0 RPG, as well as 13.1 points per contest. Ja'Kobi Gillespie leads the backcourt efforts with a solid 5.8 assists per game. At only 1.9 turnovers per matchup as a ballhandler, more often than not, he positions MD well without putting the ball in harm's way.
Rodney Rice helps out with 13.9 PPG on 44.7% shooting from the field. Shelton Miguel rounds out the starters minutes with 12.0 PPG, including a team-high 41.6% from beyond the three-point line. Coach Willard tends not to extend too deep into his bench. Depending on the matchup and foul trouble, Tafara Gapare, Jordan Geronimo, DeShawn Harris-Smith, and Jay Young average around 10 minutes for each fixture. For the most part, though, the rotations are set, and the closing lineup is set.
The Western Athletic Champions, Grand Canyon, are led in scoring by JaKobe Coles. The senior forward averages 14.8 PPG on 52.1% shooting from the field. Duke Brennan leads this group on the boards with 9.2 RPG. Ray Harrison, meanwhile, dishes out the most assists at 2.9 per contest. He does, however, turn the ball over on average 1.7 times each game.
The WAC champions have a balanced scoring approach. Four of their contributors average between 10.7 and 14.8 PPG. This makes it difficult for the Terrapin defense to necessarily focus on just one person to stop defensively.
This is part of the reason why many Terps fans are criticizing the seeding from Selection Sunday. Not only will Maryland need to travel to Seattle, but this is legitimately one of the tougher lower seeds playing in the tournament. Even with this scheduling adversity, coach Willard will look to avoid a major upset this upcoming Friday.
How to watch Maryland vs. Grand Canyon
- Date: Friday, March 21
- Time: 4:30 p.m. ET
- Venue: Climate Pledge Arena (Seattle, WA)
- How to Watch: TBS
- Maryland record: 25-8 (14-6)
- Grand Canyon record: 26-7 (13-3)