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Maryland Basketball: Terps road woes create an issue

By Bryce Bennett

Feb 18, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Maryland Terrapins guard Melo Trimble (2) dribbles in the first half against the Minnesota Gophers at Williams Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 18, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Maryland Terrapins guard Melo Trimble (2) dribbles in the first half against the Minnesota Gophers at Williams Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports /
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Maryland basketball’s loss to #20 Purdue on Saturday brought back some disturbing road trends for the Terps.

Maryland has the talent to win the NCAA championship as the Terps’ starting lineup is one of the best in the country. It’s length, size and defensive capabilities make them a threat to make it to Houston.

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Still, some problems have consistently come up during road games this season. The Terrapins are just 3-5 overall on the road. Granted, three of those losses were against ranked opponents (North Carolina, Michigan State and Purdue), but bad losses against Minnesota and to a lesser extent Michigan have exposed some troubling things about Maryland.

The road issues will raise questions about whether this team can make a national championship run.

Below is a selection of what is currently ailing Maryland away from College Park.

1. Melo Trimble

This one is the most unlikely ailments, but it needs to be addressed.

Trimble has struggled at times this season and road games have exasperated those issues into losses. Trimble is averaging 14.2 points per game (51% shooting) and 6.4 assists this season, but recent road games this month paint a different picture.

Feb 27, 2016; West Lafayette, IN, USA; Maryland Terrapins guard Melo Trimble (2) drives past Purdue Boilermakers guard Johnny Hill (1) in the 2nd half at Mackey Arena. Purdue won the game 83-79. Mandatory Credit: Sandra Dukes-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 27, 2016; West Lafayette, IN, USA; Maryland Terrapins guard Melo Trimble (2) drives past Purdue Boilermakers guard Johnny Hill (1) in the 2nd half at Mackey Arena. Purdue won the game 83-79. Mandatory Credit: Sandra Dukes-USA TODAY Sports /

Trimble is still scoring, but his efficiency is down. Take Saturday’s road loss at Purdue as an example. Trimble scored 19 points, but nine of those were from the line. From the field he was 4-of-12 and 2-of-7 from deep. Trimble is a 32% three-point shooter, so seven attempts is simply too high.

The loss at Minnesota is a similar situation. Trimble scored 10 points on 3-of-11 shooting. He was 1-of-3 from three and recorded 6 (!) turnovers. In the road loss at Michigan, Trimble scored just two points on 1-of-7 shooting.

Teams are sagging off of him and daring him to shoot. He’s obliged with that and as a result, the team’s offensive efficiency is suffering. Trimble’s struggles over the past four to five games have actually dropped his player efficiency rating (20.2) below his freshman season mark (22.8).

For Maryland to make a run to Houston, they need him to be more efficient.

2. Bench Play

As mentioned, Maryland has one of the best starting lineups in the country. After that though, Maryland has struggled to find contributors.

The reserves that see the most minutes include sophomore guard Jared Nickens (5.2 ppg) and junior forward Damonte Dodd (3.3 ppg). These players are serviceable, but providing a scoring punch is not their speciality. Dodd has scored in double figures just once this season and Nickens six times.

Maryland’s lack of depth reared its ugly head in a few of their losses this season. Against Michigan, Maryland had two bench points (note: Diamond Stone officially didn’t start that game, but played 28 minutes to Dodd’s eight), and against Minnesota they also scored two points.

On Saturday, Maryland played nine players, but only one scored off the bench. In every Maryland loss this season except one – the Terps have lost the bench scoring battle. Depth will be a major concern in quick turnaround games next month.

3. Rebounding

This one is surprising as well. Maryland is one of the biggest teams in the country with six players over 6’9″, including a starting lineup of Jake Layman (6’9″), Robert Carter (6’9″) and Diamond Stone (6’10”). However, this depth and size has not translated into rebounding success on the road.

They have been out-rebounded by North Carolina (-2), Michigan State (-10) and Purdue (-19) in losses this season. They successfully out-rebounded Minnesota in a loss this season in Minneapolis by two, but gave up 11 offensive rebounds, including a couple in the game’s critical last minutes. In conference play overall, Maryland is a disappointing 6th in offensive rebounding and 8th in defensive rebounding. A team of this size needs to be better on the boards.

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The Terrapins began the season with eyes on a Big Ten Championship and run to Houston. As we enter March and postseason play, there are still opportunities out there for Maryland to achieve those goals. Road problems continue to plague them and they will need a big effort this week at Indiana to want a chance of a share of the Big Ten title.

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