Maryland basketball selected as a sleeper team who could make a deep run in March
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It's unclear how much more Maryland men's basketball has to prove to get ranked by the Associated Press. The unranked Terrapins are on a four-game win streak and Maryland has beaten some good Big Ten teams. The Terps beat both Illinois and Indiana on the road last week before taking down Wisconsin at home on Wednesday night.
Sitting at 17-5 (7-4) and three games back of the Big Ten leading Michigan State Spartans, the Terrapins are looking like a scary team to deal with as the season starts to wind down. Maryland has several players who can beat you on any given night. Big men Derik Queen and Julian Reese can bang down low with the best of them and guards Ja'Kobi Gillespie and Rodney Rice are both capable scorers on any given night.
Although the Terrapins don't utilize a bench like other teams, Maryland is still getting the job done. With how Maryland is peaking at the right time, 247Sports' Eric Bossi picked the Terrapins as a sleeper team that could make some noise in the NCAA Tournament.
"Talk about a value pick," Bossi wrote. "While the current Top-25 says that Kevin Willard and Maryland don't belong. The eye test does and we won't be at all surprised if the Terps make a late season push up the rankings and emerge as a very trend pick to make a deep run come tourney time.
"In freshman dynamo Derik Queen, the Terps have one of the best interior scorers in the country and Julian Reese has proven to be a tremendously complimentary player alongside the first-year star. Not many teams have the luxury of rolling out multiple double-double machines in the frontcourt like Willard's squad.
"Belmont transfer Ja'Kobi Gillespie has been much better than advertised and is one of the very best transfers in the country. His ability to score and set others up isn't matched by many other point guards. After sitting out for nearly two seasons, Rodney Rice has been a value add while Selton Miguel gives this team an edge. Like many teams, the Terps aren't particularly deep, but they've got a top-20 offense and top-25 defense per KenPom so they appear to be doing just fine."
Wisconsin was Maryland's only game this week, so after going 1-0, it feels likely we see the Terrapins' name listed in the AP Top 25 on Monday -- we thought the same thing last week.
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