Maryland (11-2, 1-1) at Washington (9-4, 0-2)
When & Where: Jan. 2, 2025 | 6:30 PM PT (9:30 PM ET) | Alaska Airlines Arena
TV: BTN | AJ Kannel, Don MacLean
Radio: One Maryland App | 105.7 FM (Baltimore) | 980 AM (DC) | SiriusXM channel 388
Betting: Maryland -6.5 | O/U: 149.5
After wrapping up non-conference play, Maryland returns to Big Ten play to begin the new year as head coach Kevin Willard will look to get back over .500 in the first of two games on the west coast.
Thursday’s game against Washington marks the first-ever matchup for Maryland, while Willard-led Seton Hall fell against the Huskies during the 2012-13 season. As Maryland looks for its first true road win of the season in two tries, they’ll face a Huskies team sitting 9-4 overall after defeating NJIT, 90-53, on Sunday for its largest win since 2017. Washington is 7-2 at home so far this season, though is one week removed from a nine-point home loss vs. Seattle as first-year head coach Danny Sprinkle returns just three players from last year’s team.
The Huskies are led by senior forward Great Osobor, a preseason All-American selection by Blue Ribbon Yearbook who followed Sprinkle from Montana State and Utah State. Osobor ranks fourth in the conference in steals (2.1) and sixth in rebounds per game (8.7), making him one of three players to be nationally ranked top-60 in both categories.
Osobor became the first player since Blake Griffin in 2008 to post at least 15 points, 17 rebounds and six steals in the season-opening win vs. UC Davis. He’s one of three Huskies averaging double figures as sophomore guard Tyler Harris, who also leads the team in blocks (18), entering the matchup averaging 13.5 points while shooting nearly 50% from the field. Freshman guard and former McDonalds All-American guard ‘Zoom’ Diallo is averaging 10.6 points in 22 minutes of action.
Senior guard Tyree Iheanacho is one of two players to start all 13 games this season while Mekhi Mason has started the last four games. Senior forward Wihelm Breidenbach, the lone returner to play more than ten games last season, is the fifth expected starter for the Huskies on Thursday.
Washington enters Thursday ranked as the third-worst scoring offense in the Big Ten while the Huskies were outscored by 30 points in its two Big Ten games this season. That bodes well for a Terps’ defense that ranks 12th nationally in points allowed per game (61.1) – a program-best since 1981-82.
For Maryland, they’ll look to kick off its west coast swing with its fourth consecutive win of the season.
Derik Queen leads all five starters in scoring with 16.8 points per game as he looks to carry his dominant into conference play. While Selton Miguel has scored in double figures in each of the last seven games, Ja’Kobi Gillespie finished just shy of his second consecutive double-double vs. UMES as he enters the matchup scoring in double figures in all but three games this season. While he’s proven himself more than capable of running Maryland on both ends of the floor, Gillespie has also proven himself as one of the most efficient guards in the country with 30 assists to just four turnovers over his last four games.
Julian Reese, who leads the conference in offensive rebounds per game (3.5) ahead of Osobor (3), enters Thursday three points away from tying Mike Jones for 40th on the all-time scoring list. Reese is also two blocks away from tying Damonte Dodd for eighth-most all-time in program history.
Though Maryland narrowly missed the updated AP top 25 for the second consecutive week, the Terps enter Thursday ranked inside the top-20 in the NET (13), KenPom (19), Torvik (16) and EvanMiya (13) rankings.