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Maryland Basketball: Terps face Holy Cross Crusaders in season opener

By Anthony Brown

JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA - MARCH 23: The Maryland Terrapins huddle together as they take on the LSU Tigers during the second half of the game in the second round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Vystar Memorial Arena on March 23, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA - MARCH 23: The Maryland Terrapins huddle together as they take on the LSU Tigers during the second half of the game in the second round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Vystar Memorial Arena on March 23, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images) /
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No. 7 Maryland basketball came out firing on all cylinders against the Fayetteville State Broncos in their 76-43 exhibition victory. The Holy Cross Crusaders come to town on Tuesday at 7:30 pm on BTN+.

My initial impression of Maryland Basketball against Fayetteville State was they looked solid as the game went along.

The first basket of that game came from an alley-oop connection between Darryl Morsell and Jalen Smith.

I was impressed with their defense early on and how they pressured the basketball in the half-court. Every time the Terps got a rebound they would push the ball down the floor. Creating pace for the offense in that regard is always a plus. Even if a fast break opportunity didn’t result in points, keeping the Broncos defense off-balance is what the Terps wanted.

Maryland basketball also showed their consistency when shooting the basketball during the game as they made six baskets on eight trips inside of 10 minutes in the second half.

Key contributors in the game were Anthony Cowan Jr. (16 points, two steals), Eric Ayala (13 points), Smith (10 points, seven rebounds, four blocks) and Donta Scott (10 points, five rebounds, three assists).

Scott played really well and showed he was comfortable out on the floor making plays and taking what the defense gave him. Another freshman that stood out was Makhi Mitchell (eight rebounds, four points, three blocks). These two will be strong contributors for the Terps once they can get more games under their belts.

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The Holy Cross Crusaders finished their season at 16-17 overall and 6-12 in the Patriot League last year. Guards Jacob Grandison (13.9 points per game, five rebounds per game, 36.5 percent three-point shooter), Austin Butler (12.6 points per game, 4.1 rebounds per game) and Caleb Green (10.8 points per game 3.2 assists per game) and Forward Jehyve Floyd (12.9 points per game, 6.1 rebounds per game, 66.9 percent shooter from the field) led the team.

Butler is the only returning top scorer for the Crusaders. They beat the Assumption Greyhounds 88-77 at home in their exhibition matchup. Butler led the Crusaders with 20 points on 8-of-15 shooting and 12 rebounds followed by Joe Pridgen’s 17 points, nine rebounds, and four assists. Two other players reached double figures in points as well.

The Crusaders scored 50 points in the paint and outrebounded the Greyhounds 45-39 on the boards.

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Maryland basketball is going to need to win the battle on the glass which will lead to them getting out in transition for scoring opportunities. Defense is going to be another key for the Terps because of how well Holy Cross was able to score near the basket.

Maryland basketball is back, and they look to officially start the season off strong.

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