By Zachary Koehler
Last season, Maryland men’s basketball suffered its first home loss to Georgetown. That 10-point defeat was the beginning of one of the Terps’ worst seasons in school history. Georgetown again handed Maryland its first defeat this season, dominating the Terps in an 86-74 win at Capital One Arena on Saturday night.
The biggest difference offensively came from the 3-point line. Georgetown shot exceptionally well from behind the arc, making 15 of 30 attempts from deep.
Jaland Lowe set the tone for the Hoyas. He went 4-for-6 from beyond the arc in the first half and led all scorers with 14 points. The senior guard added another three-pointer in the second half and finished the game with a team-high 22 points and eight assists.
“Honestly, J Lowe got me speechless,” said Georgetown junior guard Kayvaun Mulready. “I’ve never had a point guard like this.”
While the Hoyas were great from deep, the Terps were anything but. Maryland went 3-for-20 from the 3-point line and wasn’t able to keep up with Georgetown.
“I don’t necessarily think that they were all bad shots,” Maryland head coach Buzz Williams said. “We define shots by medals … we didn’t have near the gold attempts that you need to have.”
Senior forward Pharrel Payne was the bright spot on offense for the Terps. He finished the game with 28 points and was the go-to guy on most of the second-half possessions.
The Terps held an advantage over Georgetown on the boards. Maryland grabbed 37 rebounds, including 19 offensive boards.
“One of our team pillars is rebounding,” Payne said. “We take a lot of pride going to the offensive glass as well as trying to keep a high percentage of defensive rebounds.”
The problem for the Terps came in converting those rebounds into points. Maryland had 24 second-chance points, only four more than Georgetown despite out-rebounding them by 10.
On the defensive side, the Terps’ aggressive nature consistently backfired throughout the night. Maryland often double-teamed the ball-handler off screens, leaving an open shooter on the perimeter.
Fouls also hurt Maryland defensively. The Terps committed four fouls in under a minute to start the second half. With less than three minutes played in the second half, the Hoyas were in the bonus.
“We should have played with our chest more and less with our hands,” Payne said. “I think that’s something me and the guys got to talk about.”
Maryland did close the game on a 10-0 run to draw the final score closer than it had been all second half. It was just too little, too late for the Terps.
Maryland will have to pivot quickly as its tough non-conference schedule continues with a home game against No. 9 Virginia on Nov. 13. It’ll be the first top-10 opponent for Maryland since their loss at No. 10 Michigan State on Jan. 24.
Featured Image: The exterior of Xfinity Center, where the men’s basketball team plays, last spring. Photo by Anika Stikeleather.