Ohio State vs. Maryland: 2019-20 college basketball game preview, TV schedule
By Neil Adler
A pair of top-15 clubs will clash on Tuesday evening in the Big Ten Conference, as Ohio State travels to College Park to face Maryland.
TV schedule: Tuesday, January 7, 7:00 pm ET. ESPN.
Arena: XFINITY Center in College Park, Md.
The stakes are high for Maryland and Ohio State when these two Big Ten Conference crews meet up at the XFINITY Center on Tuesday night in a top-15 showdown. The No. 12 Terrapins (12-2, 2-1) and the No. 11 Buckeyes (11-3, 1-2) both are trying to keep pace in the league standings, with Michigan State the lone remaining group that is unblemished in conference competition.
Maryland, at No. 14 in the NCAA NET system, has captured two in a row, over Indiana and Bryant. Ohio State, No. 11 in the NET ratings, has done the exact opposite, losing consecutive contests to Wisconsin and West Virginia, which is a top-25 unit.
At this juncture in the 2019-20 campaign, the Terrapins own victories against a handful of solid schools, including Illinois, Notre Dame, Marquette, Harvard, Temple and George Mason. Maryland’s duo of setbacks is on the road to Seton Hall and now-No. 20 Penn State.
The Buckeyes possess impressive conquests of then-No. 6 Kentucky and then-No. 10 Villanova, the aforementioned Nittany Lions, Cincinnati and North Carolina. Ohio State’s third defeat came at Minnesota.
Besides eyeing a possible Big Ten regular-stanza crown, the Buckeyes and the Terrapins are looking to position themselves well for the 2020 NCAA Tournament. The bevy of bracketologists, so far, deem Ohio State as a No. 2 seed in March Madness, and Maryland on the No. 3 line.
From a statistical perspective, each squad has an edge in several categories. The Buckeyes get the nod in points scored and allowed field-goal and 3-point shooting percentages, and assists. On the flip side, the Terrapins are better at rebounding, blocks, steals, turnovers committed, and shooting from the charity stripe.
Beyond the arc is critical, in my opinion, because Ohio State connects on a stellar 39.6 percent from deep, versus a sub-par 30.7 percent for Maryland. That could prove a huge difference-maker.
A compelling match-up should occur among star forwards for these teams who both generate nearly a double-double per affair. Buckeyes junior Kaleb Wesson is notching 14.7 points and 9.3 boards, while Terrapins sophomore Jalen Smith is tallying 13.5 points and 9.9 rebounds.
Top 25 national power rankings. dark. Next
All-time, Maryland is 8-6 against Ohio State, and ESPN’s Basketball Power Index gives the Terrapins a 59.8 percent chance to prevail over the Buckeyes. Since joining the Big Ten in the 2014–15 term, Maryland is 3-0 at home versus Ohio State, and I believe that the Terrapins will do just enough to push that mark to 4-0.
Prediction: Maryland 68 – Ohio State 67