Struggling Maryland hosts No. 6 Michigan State (Jan 28, 2018)
Since Maryland moved to the Big Ten in 2014, the stakes in the annual basketball matchups with Michigan State have always been high, and Sunday's showdown at Xfinity Center in College Park, Md., is no different.
With the No. 6 Spartans (19-3, 7-2 Big Ten) rolling into town on a three-game winning streak amid a major shakeup in the athletic department, the undermanned Terrapins find themselves desperate for a high-profile victory to improve their postseason chances.
Maryland (15-7, 4-5) has lost three of its last four, including last-second losses at Ohio State and last Monday at Indiana.
"My kids battled," said Maryland coach Mark Turgeon, who has guided his last four teams to the NCAA Tournament but has lost two key players to season-ending injuries. "That's all I can ask. If we were laying eggs it would be tougher, but we're battling."
While the Terrapins got six days off to lick their wounds, Michigan State played three games in seven days, including Friday's 76-61 victory against Wisconsin. Miles Bridges had 24 points to lead four players in double figures, a temporary diversion for the school, which has been rocked by charges of failure to properly deal with sexual assault, violence and discrimination complaints.
University president Lou Anna Simon and athletic director Mark Hollis resigned, and basketball coach Tom Izzo has had to address his status. "I'm not going anywhere," Izzo said this week, hoping to return his team's focus to the basketball court.
Bridges had 15 points, six rebounds and two blocks to pace the Spartans in the first meeting with Maryland this season, a 91-61 MSU victory in East Lansing. The then-No. 1 ranked Spartans had trouble with the Terrapins early, though.
Anthony Cowan had 26 points and Kevin Huerter finished with 16, but the Spartans' superior depth wore down Maryland, at that time still adjusting to life without forward Justin Jackson (shoulder surgery) and Ivan Bender (knee).
The Spartans shot 57 percent, controlled the backboards 34-27, and knocked down a season-high 16 3-pointers. Jaren Jackson, MSU's 6-foot-11 forward, hit five of those 3-pointers, creating one of many matchup problems for the Terrapins. Nick Ward hit 6 of 8 shots and had a team-high 18 points.
In the first meeting, Maryland freshman Darryl Morsell, all 6-foot-4 of him, drew the 6-foot-7 Bridges, who was named a finalist for the Oscar Robertson (basketball writers' player of the year) Trophy this week.
"I absolutely love this team," Izzo said. "I don't love what they do all the time, but I love this team. Sometimes I wish I didn't like them as much because it makes it harder to get on them."
The Terrapins, who are 3-4 against the Spartans since joining the Big Ten, could still be an obstacle for Michigan State trying to keep pace with Ohio State and Purdue in the conference race. Maryland is 12-1 at home this season, and beat Michigan State at Xfinity last season 63-60 on Melo Trimble's last-second 3-pointer.
