No. 23 Maryland (5-0)
vs. Coppin State (3-4)
November 25, 2022
XFINITY Center
4:00 pm ET
COLLEGE PARK, MD - Coming off an 88-70 decision over Miami to win the Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off Championship, the No. 23 Maryland men's basketball team returns home to host Coppin State for the first time since 1989. Thanks to their impressive 5-0 start to the year, the Terps vaulted into both the AP Top 25 at No. 23 and the USA Today Coaches Poll at No. 25. The opening tip is slated for 4 p.m., and the game will be streamed on B1G+. Fans can listen to the Maryland Sports Network (105.7 FM - Baltimore, The TEAM 980 AM - Washington, D.C., One Maryland App) with Voice of the Terps Johnny Holliday (play-by-play), Chris Knoche (analyst), and Walt Williams (analyst) calling the action.
The Terps have put together one of the toughest defenses in the country ranking 38th in scoring defense (57.8 ppg), 36th in field goal percentage defense (36.5%), and 8th in three-point percentage defense (22.1%).
The match-up will also feature the return of Juan Dixon who led Maryland to the 2002 National Championship and is considered one of the greatest Terps of all-time. Dixon was a 2002 consensus First Team All-American, the NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player, the ACC Player of the Year, and the ACC Athlete of the year. He was the only player in NCAA history to accumulate 2,000 points, 300 steals, and 200 three-point field goals. His 2,269 points are still the program's all-time career record.
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Willard's Early Milestones
- Kevin Willard has become the first coach in Maryland history to start 5-0 in his first season leading the Terps. He has also become the first coach in program history to have Maryland ranked nationally during a coach's first season.
- Willard is one of just four current head coaches in their first year with a program to remain unbeaten this season joining San Francisco's Chris Gerlufsen, Kansas State's Jerome Tang, LSU's Matt McMahon, and Missouri's Dennis Gates. His is the only one in the group to have his team ranked in either the AP or USA Top 25 polls.
No Sophomore Slump For Reese
- After a relatively quiet opening night with seven points and seven rebounds against Niagara, Julian Reese has shown fans he can be a dominant player for the Terps after tying his career-high with 19 points against both Western Carolina and Binghamton. Against the Catamounts, he also posted his first career double-double with a career-high 12 rebounds.
- On the year, Reese is second on the team in scoring at 13.2 points and leads the Terps in rebounds (13.2). Nationally, Reese ranks 4th (2nd in the Big Ten) with a 79.4 field goal percentage (27-of-34).
- In the first three games of the season, sharpshooter Don Carey was just 2-of-14 from beyond the arc; that changed dramatically in the Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off tourament at Mohegan Sun. In the wins over Saint Louis and Miami, Carey drilled 8-of-19 from deep averaging 14 points per game. Against the Billikens, he was 4-of-10 from beyond the arc while adding six rebounds and two assists. He followed that with 12 points (on four triples) to go with five rebounds.
Scott Reaches 1,000 Points; Eclipses 500 Boards
- Donta Scott became the 59th player in program history to reach 1,000 points in the win over Miami. He scored 24 points in that game and now has 1,010 career points. He is also the 17th Terp to post 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in a career. Through 99 career games he now has 527 rebounds
- Darryl Morsell (1,090 points / 510 rebounds / 2018-21) and Anthony Cowan (1,881 points / 508 rebounds / 2017-20) are the most recent to do so.
- Scott was one of 20 players named to the Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Watch List as announced by the Basketball Hall of Fame in late October.
- This is Scott's second year on the watch list after also garnering the honor last season. He joins Jalen Smith (2019-20) and Jake Layman (2014-15) as Terps to be recognized.
- Scott ranked as the No. 49 overall player nationally last season.
Fun News & Notes
- NOVEMBER REIGN - Maryland is 70-13 in November games dating back to 2010-11.
- GET YOURSELF A FOUR-PACK OF 20 PIECES - With the victory over Saint Louis, Maryland picked up four-consecutive 20+ point wins for the first time since 2009-10. In that season 13 years ago, the Terps also won the first four games of the season by a 20-point plus margin. The last time Maryland won five-straight by 20-or-more - the start of the 1998-99 season. The Terps opened that season with a 10-game win streak overall.
- DEFENSE GENERATES OFFENSE - Maryland is forcing 13.4 turnovers per game which has translated to 16.8 points off turnovers. Nearly 21 percent of the Terps offense has been generated off turnovers.
- RISING STOCK FROM KENPOM - The win over Saint Louis moved Maryland up 14 spots in the KenPom rankings. The Terps entered last weekend ranked No. 42 before jumping to No. 28 after the 28-point win. Following the win over Miami, Maryland moved up to No. 22 ahead of Illinois, Michigan State, and Ohio State who are right after the Terps.
- MAKING POSITIVE CONTRIBUTIONS - Donta Scott and Hakim Hart lead the Terps with outstanding +123 and +114 ratings through five games - the only players above 100. Julian Reese is just behind at +94. The trio are the top players in terms of +/- early in the season. The trio along with fellow starters Jahmir Young and Don Carey are +42 as a line-up on the year.
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