No. 23 Maryland Basketball (9-2, 1-1 Big Ten) and the Seton Hall Pirates (8-3) are looking to continue their winning ways but one team will fall in this head to head matchup Saturday Afternoon.
TV Schedule: Saturday, December 22, 5:30 p.m. ET, FS1
Location: Xfinity Center, College Park, Maryland
Both Maryland Basketball and the Seton Hall Pirates have winning streaks to keep alive as the 2018 college basketball rolls on. The Terps had a block party going on against the Loyola Maryland Greyhounds early in their 94-71 victory. The Terps got to the free throw line 19 times and they were nearly perfect, making 17 of them. The Terps also outrebounded the Greyhounds 42-28 with 11 more possessions coming via offensive rebounds.
Seton Hall is coming into this matchup having won five games in a row. Their most recent win came at home against the Sacred Heart Pioneers. Their 90-76 win was a result of their defense causing 21 turnovers (16 steals) and on the offensive end, put up 23 assists.
Maryland Basketball is going to have their hands full with Pirates leading scorer Myles Powell (22.7 PPG, 2.0 SPG, 47 percent shooting from the field) because he can hurt a defense from the three-point line if they let him and he has the speed to get the basket and score with ease and draw fouls. It’s imperative that the Terps try to contain his scoring and force him to give up the ball. They also will need to watch their ball security. Sandro Mamukelashvili is averaging a double-double this season (10.3 PPG, 8.0 RPG) and it will be important for the Terps frontcourt to contain his production.
It will be interesting to see who wins the point guard matchup between Anthony Cowan Jr. and Powell. It will be close because both of them are very good at scoring inside the paint and from beyond the arc. Winning the matchup will come down to who can facilitate the basketball better and make the hustle plays.
This looks to be a good matchup for both teams looking to continue their winning ways. With a lot of talent on both ends, the game should not lack personality or highlight plays.