Terps to be tested by Syracuse zone on short rest
While Maryland (6-1) has already played three games away from College Park this season, the Terps get set to play their first true road game of the year Nov. 27 when they travel to Syracuse (5-0) to take on the Orange in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge.
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Monday night’s game will mark the ninth all-time meeting between these two storied college hoops programs and Maryland’s third trip to the Carrier Dome. The Terps lead the all-time series 5-3, but the Orange have won the last three meetings, including the most recent during the 2013-2014 season.
Perhaps the biggest hurdle Maryland faces right now is the lack of rest the Terps have had between their holiday tournament down in Destin, Fla., and their showdown with Syracuse. Mark Turgeon’s team will be playing its third game in four days after going 1-1 in the Emerald Coast Classic over the weekend.
Maryland dropped its first game of the season Nov. 24 against St. Bonaventure but bounced back strong with a 15-point win over New Mexico Nov. 25.
Making Maryland’s short turnover even more challenging is the 2-3 zone that Syracuse has deployed on defense and had success with for decades under head coach Jim Boeheim. With the length and athleticism of the type of players the Orange recruit, Boeheim’s 2-3 zone is nearly impossible for opposing teams to prepare for on short notice, which has helped lead to a lot of March Madness success for Syracuse.
The Terps have been zoned plenty already this year by smaller teams who hope to keep the ball out of the paint and dare Maryland to beat them with its outside shooting. Turgeon’s squad has had its ups and downs scoring against the zone, but Syracuse’s 2-3 is a different animal.
The Orange currently rank 49th in adjusted defensive efficiency according to KenPom, and are holding opponents to 31.5 percent shooting from beyond the arc and 36.1 percent on two-point field goals, which is good for second-best nationally.
Syracuse’s defense also boasts college basketball’s best block percentage (26.5) and eighth-best steal percentage (13.1). These are particularly alarming numbers for a Terps team that enters the Carrier Dome ranking 338th in turnover percentage (25.1) on offense so far this season.
Maryland’s 20 turnovers was its kryptonite against St. Bonaventure, and while the Terps played a much cleaner first half in their next game against New Mexico, the sloppiness reared its head again and made it a much closer game after halftime. Between their two holiday tournament games, the Terps turned the ball over 42 times.
Pounding the ball inside to freshman sensation Bruno Fernando, who is shooting 64.4 percent from the floor through the first seven games of his college career, and senior Michal Cekovsky won’t come easy for Maryland on Monday night, so the Terps will have to rely on its backcourt and perimeter players such as Anthony Cowan and Kevin Huerter to be smart with the ball and make some outside shots.
A Clifton Park, N.Y., native, Huerter will be playing in front a large contingent of friends and family from upstate New York on Monday night. The sophomore, who leads the Terps in assists per game (4.1) and is second in scoring (10.7), will hope to build upon his stat-stuffing, 8-point, 8-rebound, 6-assist outing against New Mexico.
Cowan has started his sophomore campaign red hot and has led the Terps in scoring in six of seven games so far this season. Maryland’s floor general is averaging 15.3 points per game and is coming off averaging 17 points and 2.5 assists per game in the Emerald Coast Classic.
In order for Maryland to have success against Syracuse, Huerter and Cowan have to be deliberate with their entry passes and selective with their shots. An offensive contribution from fellow sophomore Justin Jackson, who has been slow to get going so far this year, would also be welcomed by the Terps.
Syracuse’s offense is predicated off of its defense. The Orange are not a particularly good shooting team and get many of their points off of opponent turnovers and by being very good at collecting offensive rebounds. With newfound size and depth in the frontcourt, Maryland has been outrebounding its opponents by a large margin this season. The Terps will have to limit Syracuse’s second chances on Monday night, as well as take care of the ball so that the Orange don’t get easy points off fast breaks.
If Maryland can play smart and efficient on offense, it should have the firepower to outscore Syracuse.
But Stopping freshman forward Oshae Brisett and sophomore guard Tyus Battle also has to be a priority for the Terps. Brisett is coming off a 17-point, 14-rebound game against Toledo, and Battle leads Syracuse in scoring with 20 points per game. The Terps have a nice combination of long, physical guards like Huerter and Darryl Morsell to throw at Battle, while Jackson will likely draw the assignment of Brisett.
The biggest question facing both teams is the status of a couple of top guards. Syracuse leading scorer Tyus Battle is a game-time decision after suffering a bruised lower back versus Toledo, while Maryland freshman guard Darryl Morsell played limited minutes for the Terps in Florida after suffering a hamstring injury days earlier.
One area where Maryland has a considerable advantage is in experience. Although many of the Terps’ key contributors are underclassmen, Maryland still has a core of upperclassmen and team leaders to balance out the chemistry. Syracuse has just one senior--Geno Thorpe--on its entire roster.
On paper, this game is about as much of a coin-flip as you can get. But for what it’s worth, KenPom give the Terps a 54 percent chance to win and predicts an outcome of Maryland on top 68-67.
The game can be seen on ESPN2 at 7 p.m. EST. Rich Hollenberg and LaPhonso Ellis have the call.