Dez Wells is averaging 14 points in the last two games for the Terps.
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The No. 11 Maryland men’s basketball team embarks on a two-game road trip beginning with a game at Illinois Wednesday at 9 p.m. EST/8 p.m. CT on the Big Ten Network.
WATCH: BTN - Eric Collins (Play-by-Play), Shon Morris (Analyst)
LISTEN: Terrapin Sports Radio Network - Johnny Holliday(Play-by-Play), Chris Knoche (Analyst), Walt Williams(Sideline); SiriusXM 84, ESPN 980, 105.7 FM.
LIVE STATS: Stats
SOCIAL: Follow @TerrapinHoops on Twitter for updates
STORYLINES
• Melo Trimble scored 20 points, and No. 12 Maryland used a strong defensive performance to beat Minnesota 70-58 on Saturday in the Terrapins’ inaugural Big Ten home game. Dez Wells added 12 points, seven rebounds and four assists, and sophomore Damonte Dodd had a career-high 12 rebounds for the Terrapins, who have won seven straight. The victory capped a memorable first week of Big Ten play for the Terrapins, who beat Michigan State on the road in double overtime last Tuesday.
• Maryland’s 14-1 record is its strongest start to begin a season, matching the 1996-97 campaign. Maryland has never started a season 15-1. The Terps’ No. 11 ranking is the highest for the program since it was No. 8 on February 3, 2003. Head coach Mark Turgeon ranked as high as No. 8 with Wichita State (2006) and No. 9 (2007-08) at Texas A&M. The Aggies were 10th on January 17, 2011 in his final season in College Station.
• Illinois is 10-5 on the year including a pair of road losses at Michigan and Ohio State to begin the Big Ten season. Rayvonte Rice leads the Illini both offensively and on the boards, averaging 17.2 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. Illinois boasts the fourth-highest scoring unit in the Big Ten, posting 76.9 points per game and is a league-best .776 from the charity stripe.
• Maryland leads the Big Ten in field goal percentage defense (.369) and three-point field goal percentage defense (.278) and have held opponents to .400 or below in six of the last seven games, including limiting conference foes Michigan State to a .323 mark and Minnesota to a .338 clip.
• Maryland is 5-4 all-time against Illinois including a 76-63 win during the Terps’ national championship campaign on Nov. 29, 2001 to extend Maryland’s non-conference home winning streak to 80 games, the longest streak in the nation at the time. Current special assistant to head coach Mark Turgeon and former Terrapin great Juan Dixon was one of four players to score in double figures, joining fellow future pros Steve Blake, Chris Wilcox and Drew Nicholas.
• Dez Wells added 12 points, seven rebounds and four assists, and sophomore Damonte Dodd had a career-high 12 rebounds for the Terrapins (14-1, 2-0), who have won seven straight. Maryland is off to its best start since the 1996-97 season when it also went 14-1.
• Trimble went 9-for-13 at the foul line with five rebounds in front of a season-high crowd of 15,788 at XFINITY Center.
SCOUTING ILLINOIS
• Illinois is 10-5 on the year including a pair of road losses at Michigan and Ohio State to begin the Big Ten season.
• Illinois boasts the fourth-highest scoring unit in the Big Ten, posting 76.9 points per game and is a league-best .776 from the charity stripe.
• Maryland is 5-4 all-time against Illinois including a 76-63 win during the Terps’ national championship campaign on Nov. 29, 2001 to extend Maryland’s non-conference home winning streak to 80 games, the longest streak in the nation at the time.
MARYLAND CLIMBS THE POLLS
• With seven-consecutive victories to start the season, the Maryland men’s basketball team landed back in the top 25 for the first time since the 2009-10 season on Dec. 1.
• Maryland, which is ranked 11th in the latest Associated Press top-25 poll, boasts its highest ranking since it was No. 8 on Feb. 3, 2003.
GETTING DEFENSIVE
• Head coach Mark Turgeon has been emphasizing defense all year long.
• The Terps limited No. 13 Iowa State to just a total of 63 points - 23 points under their season average - and to 29.7 percent from the field on Nov. 25. Additionally, Maryland held Minnesota - a team averaging 82 points per game entering Maryland’s Big Ten home opener on Jan. 3 - to a mere 50 points.
• Maryland is tops in the Big Ten in field goal pct. defense (.369) and three-point field goal pct. defense (.278).
• The Terps have held 12 of 15 opponents to .400 or less from the field. Maryland is limiting Big Ten foes to a .331 field goal percentage, including a .182 clip from three-point range.
MEET THE B1G: ILLINOIS
SEASON PREVIEW: TERPS THINK B1G IN 2014-15
• With a top-10 recruiting class and his most experienced team in four years as head coach at Maryland, Mark Turgeon has the Terrapins poised for its inaugural season in the Big Ten Conference.
• Maryland, which finished 17-15 last season, boasts a balanced team featuring a mix of veteran leadership and key newcomers. Among the leaders is 2013 ACC-All Conferece and USBWA All-District III selection Dez Wells, who changed his number to 44 to honor a deceased former teammate for his senior season. Wells is joined by seniorsEvan Smotrycz and Jon Graham and sophomore Damonte Dodd in the frontcourt, in addition to junior Jake Laymanon the wing.
• Turgeon also hauled in the ninth-best recruiting class in the nation according to Scout.com, showcasing McDonald’s All-American point guard Melo Trimble (Upper Marlboro, Md.), shooting guard Dion Wiley (Oxon Hill, Md.), guard Jared Nickens (Monmouth Junction, N.J.) and forward Michal Cekovsky (Slovakia, Europe).
GET TO KNOW THE BIG TEN CONFERENCE
WATCH: BTN - Eric Collins (Play-by-Play), Shon Morris (Analyst)
LISTEN: Terrapin Sports Radio Network - Johnny Holliday(Play-by-Play), Chris Knoche (Analyst), Walt Williams(Sideline); SiriusXM 84, ESPN 980, 105.7 FM.
LIVE STATS: Stats
SOCIAL: Follow @TerrapinHoops on Twitter for updates
STORYLINES
• Maryland’s 14-1 record is its strongest start to begin a season, matching the 1996-97 campaign. Maryland has never started a season 15-1. The Terps’ No. 11 ranking is the highest for the program since it was No. 8 on February 3, 2003. Head coach Mark Turgeon ranked as high as No. 8 with Wichita State (2006) and No. 9 (2007-08) at Texas A&M. The Aggies were 10th on January 17, 2011 in his final season in College Station.
• Illinois is 10-5 on the year including a pair of road losses at Michigan and Ohio State to begin the Big Ten season. Rayvonte Rice leads the Illini both offensively and on the boards, averaging 17.2 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. Illinois boasts the fourth-highest scoring unit in the Big Ten, posting 76.9 points per game and is a league-best .776 from the charity stripe.
• Maryland leads the Big Ten in field goal percentage defense (.369) and three-point field goal percentage defense (.278) and have held opponents to .400 or below in six of the last seven games, including limiting conference foes Michigan State to a .323 mark and Minnesota to a .338 clip.
• Maryland is 5-4 all-time against Illinois including a 76-63 win during the Terps’ national championship campaign on Nov. 29, 2001 to extend Maryland’s non-conference home winning streak to 80 games, the longest streak in the nation at the time. Current special assistant to head coach Mark Turgeon and former Terrapin great Juan Dixon was one of four players to score in double figures, joining fellow future pros Steve Blake, Chris Wilcox and Drew Nicholas.
TERPS WIN B1G HOME OPENER VS. MINNESOTA
• Melo Trimble scored 20 points, and then-No. 12 Maryland used a strong defensive performance to beat Minnesota 70-58 on Saturday in the Terrapins’ inaugural Big Ten home game.• Dez Wells added 12 points, seven rebounds and four assists, and sophomore Damonte Dodd had a career-high 12 rebounds for the Terrapins (14-1, 2-0), who have won seven straight. Maryland is off to its best start since the 1996-97 season when it also went 14-1.
• Trimble went 9-for-13 at the foul line with five rebounds in front of a season-high crowd of 15,788 at XFINITY Center.
SCOUTING ILLINOIS
• Illinois boasts the fourth-highest scoring unit in the Big Ten, posting 76.9 points per game and is a league-best .776 from the charity stripe.
• Maryland is 5-4 all-time against Illinois including a 76-63 win during the Terps’ national championship campaign on Nov. 29, 2001 to extend Maryland’s non-conference home winning streak to 80 games, the longest streak in the nation at the time.
MARYLAND CLIMBS THE POLLS
• Maryland, which is ranked 11th in the latest Associated Press top-25 poll, boasts its highest ranking since it was No. 8 on Feb. 3, 2003.
GETTING DEFENSIVE
• The Terps limited No. 13 Iowa State to just a total of 63 points - 23 points under their season average - and to 29.7 percent from the field on Nov. 25. Additionally, Maryland held Minnesota - a team averaging 82 points per game entering Maryland’s Big Ten home opener on Jan. 3 - to a mere 50 points.
• Maryland is tops in the Big Ten in field goal pct. defense (.369) and three-point field goal pct. defense (.278).
• The Terps have held 12 of 15 opponents to .400 or less from the field. Maryland is limiting Big Ten foes to a .331 field goal percentage, including a .182 clip from three-point range.
MEET THE B1G: ILLINOIS
- Final Four Appearances: Five
- NCAA Tournament Appearances: 30
- Head Coach: John Groce
- Venue: State Farm Center (16,618)
- Current NBA Players: Meyers Leonard (Portland Trail Blazers), Deron Williams (Brooklyn Nets)
- Fact: The Fighting Illini’s raucous orange-clad student sections is appropriately nicknamed the Orange Krush
BIG GAMES VS. BIG TEN
• In the early portion of the national championship season, the fourth-ranked Terps defeated No. 2 Illinois, 76-63. The win marked Maryland’s 80th consecutive non-conference home victory, the longest streak in the nation at the time.Juan Dixon, Steve Blake, Drew Nicholas and Chris Wilcox all registered double-digit points.SEASON PREVIEW: TERPS THINK B1G IN 2014-15
• Maryland, which finished 17-15 last season, boasts a balanced team featuring a mix of veteran leadership and key newcomers. Among the leaders is 2013 ACC-All Conferece and USBWA All-District III selection Dez Wells, who changed his number to 44 to honor a deceased former teammate for his senior season. Wells is joined by seniorsEvan Smotrycz and Jon Graham and sophomore Damonte Dodd in the frontcourt, in addition to junior Jake Laymanon the wing.
• Turgeon also hauled in the ninth-best recruiting class in the nation according to Scout.com, showcasing McDonald’s All-American point guard Melo Trimble (Upper Marlboro, Md.), shooting guard Dion Wiley (Oxon Hill, Md.), guard Jared Nickens (Monmouth Junction, N.J.) and forward Michal Cekovsky (Slovakia, Europe).
GET TO KNOW THE BIG TEN CONFERENCE
- Big Ten has had seven First Team AP All-Americans over the last five years…same as ACC, SEC, Big 12 and Pac 12 COMBINED
- Big Ten has had two of the past five Wooden Award winners
- Big Ten has more NCAA Tournament appearances over last five years than any conference (31)
- Big Ten has more Sweet 16 appearances over last five years than any conference (16)…SEC is second closest with 10
- Big Ten leads all conferences with nearly 5 million alumni and more than 460,000 students.
