No. 9 Maryland Men’s Basketball hosts No. 25 Michigan on Senior Day

Photo Courtesy of Maryland Athletics.

Will Clark, Travis Valmon, and Anthony Cowan will all definitely be having their last outing in the Xfinity Center against Michigan in Maryland’s senior game. Jalen Smith might also be stepping on his home court for the last time. 

However, Cowan has been the single constant of a somewhat turbulent four years of Maryland men’s basketball — starting every game in his four year tenure. Exceeding almost all expectations that were cast upon him as an athlete and individual, Cowan will forever be remembered as one of the school’s greatest athletes. 

“This year kinda hit me that Anthony’s gonna go down as one of our all time greats,” said head coach Mark Turgeon. 

Etched into Maryland record books with his historic career nearing an end, Cowan’s attitude has not faltered. 

“We all knew this day was gonna come,” said Cowan. “It is what it is now all I can do is go out with a bang.” 

With a tough Michigan team coming to town, though, there might be little room for sentiment.

The Wolverines have spent much of their time this season sitting at the bottom half of the Big Ten despite being ranked and wielding a high powered offense. Their biggest game changer, Isaiah Livers, leads the team 13 points per contest while shooting 45% from the field. Zavier Simpson sits right behind Livers in scoring with 13 points and eight dimes a game. 

The Wolverines boast three more double digit scorers on their starting lineup, making their balance a unique defensive challenge for the Terps in their season finale. 

“If everybody really [is] a threat on the court you gotta really be able to guard one-on-one,” said junior guard Darryl Morsell. “That’s something we’ve really been focusing on, improving our one-on-one defense, improving our ball screen defense.” 

Defense has been Maryland’s bread and butter for much of their regular season and their success on the defensive side of the court largely influences their success as a team. Facing a potential three game losing streak, the Terps must look back to their defensive identity to turn things around.

“We’ve been able to get back to basics,” said Turgeon “We went back to some of those drills and some of those things and hopefully that’ll carry over and help us be a better defensive team.”

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