Without Pharrel Payne, Maryland men’s basketball’s offense has gone as far as Diggy Coit takes it. In the Terps’ lone conference win, that gameplan worked. Coit dropped an Xfinity Center record 43 points to shoulder the load.
But against the nation’s top defense according to KenPom — Michigan State allows just 89.9 points per 100 possessions — he could only do so much.
Despite a double-digit first-half performance from Coit, Maryland totaled just 23 points. A six-minute scoring drought didn’t help either. While the Terps drained five of their next six shots, the Spartans’ defense returned to its dominance.
Maryland scored just five points in the final seven minutes, allowing No. 10 Michigan State to grow its lead to 23 points. The Spartans never looked back, handing the Terps a 91-48 loss at the Breslin Center. Maryland produced a season-low in points and had its largest loss since it joined the Big Ten.
During Maryland’s 14-4 run late in the first half, Coit scored six of the Terps’ points — all from within the arc. But Michigan State’s elite defensive pressure forced the ball out of Coit’s hands, and Maryland’s limited offensive depth was evident.
The Terps have relied on Coit to handle the ball during conference play. With the ball in his hands, Maryland’s offense has shown flashes of a competent offense. But his overreliance has also led to some prolonged scoring droughts.
In every Big Ten game this season, the Terps have struggled to score for minutes on end. During Michigan State’s dominant run, Maryland’s offense looked out of sorts. The Terps missed eight consecutive shots and committed four turnovers during this stretch.
But when Coit started heating up, Maryland’s offense found some success. The Terps trimmed their deficit to 10 points, culminating in their best stretch of the game. That was short lived, though.
Maryland scored a near-season low in the first half with only 23 points. Michigan State nearly matched that total during its 18-0 run.
However, the Terps’ offense was never really going to find success against the Spartans. Michigan State has only allowed 70 points just three times this season, and the Spartans still found a way to win those games.
While Maryland has scored at least 70 points in each of its past three games, two of those have come in blowout losses. In competitive games, the Terps’ offense has faltered. Maryland has only averaged 69.9 points during Big Ten play — the third-worst mark in the conference.
Despite being the worst shooting team in the Big Ten at 40.1 percent, the Terps have relied on their prowess on the glass to compete this season. Maryland has collected 12.1 offensive rebounds during its eight Big Ten games, which is the second-highest mark.
But against the third-best rebounding team in the nation, the Terps’ offensive gameplan was effectively nonexistent. Maryland totaled nine offensive boards and scored six second-chance points.
With the Terps struggling to compete on the glass, their offense never stood a chance. Maryland shot just 33.3 percent from the field in the first half and made only three of its 15 three-point attempts — Coit, Elijah Saunders and Solomon Washington each nailed one.
The Terps didn’t shoot any better in the second half either, scoring 11 points in the first eight minutes.
While Maryland couldn’t find its offensive rhythm, Michigan State ran it out of the gym. Jeremy Fears Jr., in particular, gave the Terps fits. The redshirt sophomore guard entered Saturday’s game with the second-most assists in the conference at 8.4, behind Purdue’s Braden Smith.
Fears totaled an incredible 17 assists — more than Maryland has had in a game this season. His connection with Coen Carr was evident. The duo teamed up for a pair of alley oops late in the game.
While Coit and Saunders were Maryland’s only players in double-figures, Michigan State’s balanced offense led to a diverse scoring load. Ten players scored and the Spartans’ bench totaled 28 points.
But it was really Michigan State’s starting lineup that thrived. Between Jaxon Kohler, Fears, Carson Cooper and Carr, that group totaled 56 points. They each needed only eight shot attempts to reach double-digits.
Despite Maryland only finishing with 11 turnovers, the Spartans produced 31 fastbreak points. The Terps’ transition defense couldn’t keep pace with Michigan State’s fast-paced offense. A 47.4 percent shooting performance from behind the arc certainly helped too.
When Maryland’s offense has struggled this season, its ability to get to the free-throw line has usually helped overcome it. But the Terps only got to the line 11 times on Saturday and made six of them for a 54.5 percent effort.
