Can the Gophers pull off another Big Ten tournament upset vs. Maryland?

CHICAGO — Arguably the hottest team in the Big Ten met the Gophers on Wednesday night, but Nebraska couldn't match the confidence and intensity of its opponent to open Big Ten tournament play.

Ben Johnson's team suddenly looked like a group that could possibly make a postseason run after the 78-75 victory against the Cornhuskers to extend its stay in Chicago.

It didn't make sense for the Gophers to look ahead in the Big Ten tournament to the second-round opponent Thursday, but Maryland was probably the worst matchup for this round, based on the one-sided nature of the series.

Sure, the Gophers (9-21) have an advantage with 6-11 sophomore Dawson Garcia, who finished with 18 points, 13 rebounds and six assists vs. Nebraska in the opening round.

Garcia was out with a foot injury in the first meeting with Maryland at home. Since he returned from a five-game absence, Garcia's averaging 17.7 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists on 41.7% shooting from three-point range (10-for-24) and 50% from the field (50-for-100). He's clearly playing at an All-Big Ten first-team level right now.

But the Terrapins (20-11) are 9-0 vs. the Gophers since their last loss against them in 2017. Seven of those nine games were won by double digits, including by 35 points in Minneapolis in early February, and by 18 points in College Park on Feb. 22.

Minnesota's 81-46 home loss to Maryland last month was the second worst in team history at Williams Arena, behind a 39-point loss to UCLA with John Wooden and Lew Alcindor in 1968.

And if that wasn't tough enough to swallow, the Terps scorched the nets with 68.1 shooting from the field in the 88-70 victory in their last meeting with the Gophers. That was the best shooting percentage for any Big Ten team in league play since Michigan State shot 68.2% at Illinois on Jan. 23, 2018.

Why is Maryland so dominant against the Gophers? Athleticism and physicality have a lot to do with it. There probably isn't a tougher team in the Big Ten this year than the Terps, who upset then-No. 1 Purdue by double digits on Feb. 16 by slowing down national player of the year Zach Edey.

It doesn't hurt to have one of the league's top scoring guards with Jahmir Young, who leads Maryland with 16.3 points per game. And a versatile wing such as 6-8 Hakim Hart, who can make an impact on both ends of the floor. But the 6-9 sophomore Julian Reese has given the Gopher the most trouble this season.

Reese led the Terps with 16 points in the first meeting with the Gophers this season. And he topped that with 21 points and 12 rebounds in the Feb. 22 win at home. He's had 10 straight double figure scoring games, including four straight double-doubles in that stretch.

The Terps dropped their last two regular season games. Young was held to nine points on 4-for-13 shooting in a loss vs. Ohio State. But his 26 points and eight rebounds weren't enough falling to Penn State by one point in the regular season finale.

GAME INFO

Time: 8 p.m. CT, Thursday. Where: United Center. Line: Gophers 13.5-point underdogs. Series: Maryland leads the series 15-2, including an 88-70 win Feb. 22 in College Park. TV: BTN. Online/Live video: BTN-Plus. Radio: 103.5-FM

PROJECTED STARTERS

MINNESOTA GOPHERS (9-21, 2-17 BIG TEN)

Pos.-Player Ht. Yr. PPG

G – Ta'Lon Cooper 6-4 195 Jr. 10.0

G – Jaden Henley 6-7 200 Fr. 5.2

F – Jamison Battle 6-7 220 Jr. 12.8

F – Joshua Ola-Joseph 6-7 215 Fr. 7.4

F – Dawson Garcia 6-11 230 So. 15.7

Key reserves – Pharrel Payne, F, 6-9, Fr., 7.9 ppg; Braeden Carrington, G, 6-3, Fr., 5.6 ppg; Taurus Samuels, G, 6-1, Sr., 2.3 ppg.

Coach: Ben Johnson 22-38 (2nd season)

Notable: Junior forward Jamison Battle fouled out with nine minutes left Wednesday vs. Nebraska. He had 13 points and eight rebounds, but nearly played his last game as a Gopher after deciding to turn professional after this year. Junior point guard Ta'Lon Cooper also hasn't told the Gophers if he plans to stick around. But Cooper's saving is best for last with 16 points and 12 assists Wednesday, which broke the school record in a Big Ten tournament game. Gophers coach Ben Johnson (back when he played for the U in 2003) and former guard DeAndre Mathieu (2015) had the previous record with eight assists. Cooper, who shot 59% from the foul line in the regular season, also went 8-for-10 on free throws vs. Nebraska, including 4-for-6 in the final 27 seconds. The Gophers were the worst free throw shooting team in the country in the regular season (61.5%), but they shot 70% as a team on Wednesday (14-for-20).

MARYLAND TERRAPINS (20-11, 11-9)

Pos.-Player Ht. Yr. PPG

G – Jahmir Young 6-1 185 Sr. 16.3

G – Donald Carey 6-5 187 Sr. 7.1

G – Hakim Hart 6-8 205 Sr. 11.5

F – Donta Scott 6-8 205 Sr. 11.3

F – Julian Reese 6-9 230 So. 11.4

Reserves – Patrick Emilien, F, 6-7, Sr., 2.8 ppg; Ian Martinez, G, 6-3, Jr., 6.0 ppg; Jahari Long, G, 6-5, Jr., 2.4 ppg.

Coach: Kevin Willard 290-221 (16th season)

Notable: The Terrapins' 35-point win vs. the Gophers on Feb. 4 in Minneapolis tied for the largest margin of victory in the Big Ten since they joined the conference in 2014-15. It was also the largest margin of victory in a Big Ten road game. Maryland's victory that night was also the fourth straight conference win by double digits, which had not happened since the program played in the ACC in 2007. … The 68.1 percent shooting for Maryland in the Feb. 22 win vs. the Gophers is the sixth-best in school history. Only three games featuring high major teams had at least one team shoot 68% or better this season. The others were Tennessee shooting 69.2% in an 87-53 win vs. Mississippi State on Jan. 3 and TCU shooting 68.4% in a 100-75 win vs. Oklahoma State on February 18.

Fuller's score prediction: Maryland 71, Gophers 62.