Taking on Penn State tonight in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, the Terrapin men's basketball team needs a victory for more than just conference bragging rights.
The season may barely be a month old, but an out-of-conference win at University Park, Pa. — one of just two true nonconference road games this season — would help improve the Terps' NCAA Tournament resumé, especially after leaving New York's Coaches vs. Cancer Classic empty-handed two weeks ago.
A bolstered postseason portfolio and added confidence away from Comcast Center, coach Gary Williams said, both rank higher on the Terps' list of priorities than handing the ACC a win in the annual conference clash.
"We're looking forward to winning this game for Maryland," Williams said. "Yes, that stuff is nice; it's all happy stuff. But we want to win this game for us."
That's not to say that some Terps (5-2) won't enter Bryce Jordan Center tonight wanting to defend their conference pride, especially after last year's 6-5 defeat.
"Last year, we lost it, so we definitely want to win this year," forward Dino Gregory said.
The ACC won the first 10 installments of the challenge before the Big Ten finally broke the streak last season.
"We won it 10 straight years, and we didn't get a lot of extra teams in the NCAA [Tournament]," Williams said. "So this is about us getting this win."
The Terps traveled away from College Park two weeks ago, taking on then-No. 5 Pittsburgh and then-No. 13 Illinois on back-to-back days at Madison Square Garden. Despite hanging tough in both games, they lost each by single digits.
After rebounding with wins against mid-major opponents Delaware State and Elon last week, the Terps are looking for a win on a bigger stage.
The Nittany Lions went just 3-15 in the Big Ten and 11-20 overall last season, but they bring a 5-1 record, unblemished home record and star guard Talor Battle into tonight's matchup.
The senior may only be 6 feet tall, but he averages more than 18 points per game. The Terps will need to watch Battle all over the court — he's as comfortable driving into the lane as he is distributing the ball and taking outside shots.
Tonight's contest marks the front end of a crucial nonconference stretch for the Terps. After Penn State, the team faces Temple on Sunday in the BB&T Classic in Washington. Aside from a mid-January matchup at No. 12 Villanova, this week's games rank as arguably the team's lone remaining chances for a marquee win before the Terps enter the brunt of ACC play.
"It's an extremely big week, with Penn State and Temple," Gregory said. "These games, in our eyes, they're must-wins."
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