Maryland celebrated New Year’s Eve by flying more than 2,300 miles to Seattle for a game Thursday against Washington.
Welcome to the expanded Big Ten Conference.
“Usually I don’t make it past 10:30 (p.m. on New Year’s Eve), so this will be exciting for me because we’re going to be on the airplane, so I’ll be with all the guys,” Terrapins coach Kevin Willard said. “I know they’ll stay up. So hopefully we travel safe, and when we land, we’ll celebrate a New Year and get ready for the Big Ten play.”
The Terrapins (11-2, 1-1 Big Ten) opened conference action early last month by crushing Ohio State 83-59 at home before absorbing an 83-78 loss at then-No. 8 Purdue.
Freshman center Derik Queen leads Maryland with 16.8 points per game to go with 8.8 rebounds, and guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie, a transfer from Belmont, averages 13.7 points and a team-leading 4.5 assists. Julian Reese adds 12.8 points and 9.1 rebounds for a team that ranks 12th nationally with 87.2 points per game.
After playing the Huskies, Maryland will travel to No. 9 Oregon and then return home to face No. 15 UCLA.
“I think what’s really unique about the West Coast teams is that they all play four different styles,” Willard said. “Washington is a very man-to-man, runs a lot of sets, has a really good big guy. Oregon plays a pressing style like us, has a matchup zone, really shoots the three, really better.
“UCLA is tough and physical, can beat you up with their size. And USC runs and plays up and down. So I think that’s what’s really cool about the four teams we’ve added, is we’ve got four different styles of basketball that I think our fan base will really enjoy.”
The Huskies (9-4, 0-2), who lost to longtime Pac-12 rivals UCLA and USC to open conference play, will be meeting the Terrapins for the first time.
Forward Great Osobor, a preseason all-Big Ten selection, leads the Huskies in scoring (14.2 points per game), rebounding (8.7), assists (3.6) and steals (2.1).
“Obviously, it’s a great team coming in,” Osobor said of Maryland. “We already know they’ve been killing it all year, and it’s exciting. It’s why you come to Washington. So I’m excited.
“I feel like our team, we’ve had ups and downs, but one thing is, we’ve learned each game is who we are. And as long as we can keep establishing our identity and doing things we want to do, then I think we’ll take it head on and handle these games one game at a time.”
–Field Level Media
