Takeaways from No. 13 Maryland men’s basketball’s 74-61 win over Northwestern

The Terps ended their regular season on a high note.

No. 13 Maryland men’s basketball rewarded its seniors Saturday with a 74-61 win over Northwestern in its last regular season game of the year. The Wildcats held tough until the final five minutes.

Here are three takeaways from the game.

Reese shined on senior day

Maryland head coach Kevin Willard made it clear throughout the week that Saturday’s game was about honoring the team’s seniors — especially Julian Reese — more than anything.

The Terps’ game plan reflected this. While Reese missed his and Maryland’s first shot of the game, the Terps continued to feed him. He scored 11 of their first 18 points, which were crucial in a turnover-prone and inefficient first-half. Maryland committed 11 turnovers and shot 44% from the field and 20% from three in the opening 20 minutes, but Reese kept the offense afloat.

Reese was not as dominant in the second half but still finished with a team-high 19 points, primarily due to a 11-of-13 performance from the free-throw line. He also posted 11 rebounds, two blocks and a steal.

“I was just happy that he was able to get the ovation that he got, and I was really happy that he played the way he played, because if he didn’t play as physical as he had played, we would’ve struggled to win this game,” Willard said. “I think he really embraced his last time being here.”

With the postseason up next, a productive offensive game for Reese could not have come at a better time. He averaged 4.7 points per game on 25% shooting from the field over the prior three games.

Fellow starter Selton Miguel was also honored for senior day as a fifth-year. While he started slow along with the rest of the team — posting three points on 1-of-6 shooting in the first half — he scored eight consecutive points early in the second half to help Maryland mount a seven-point lead, its largest at that point.

Fifth-year senior Jordan Geronimo made an impact as well, posting four points, four rebounds and a steal in 14 minutes.

Another inefficient offensive performance

While Maryland has won its last three games, it has not been pretty — at least offensively.

A week ago at Penn State, the Terps shot 38.5% from the field and 33.3% from three. They were dragged down by a combined 4-of-23 shooting performance from Reese and Rodney Rice in a four-point win. Their shooting splits looked nearly identical in a six-point win at No. 17 Michigan Wednesday, as the Terps shot 38.1% from the field and 36% from three.

Both games could be chalked up to a tough road environment, but Saturday’s performance at Xfinity Center proved otherwise. The Terps shot the ball better at 42.3% from the field and 43.8% from three, but they committed a season-high 18 turnovers, led by Derik Queen’s five.

“The turnovers kept us in the game for a while and gave us a chance,” Northwestern head coach Chris Collins said. “We just got a little worn out.”

Maryland only committed eight turnovers in each of the last two games, but the Terps cannot afford this sloppy of a performance in the postseason.

“The turnovers are a little bit of an issue,” Willard said. “I got to figure out how to practice, how to work on our fast break. … Our fast-break numbers have really gone down because we’ve been really sloppy, because we haven’t been able to practice that as much.”

Maryland secured a top-four seed

With Saturday’s win, Maryland has officially secured a top-four seed and the coveted double-bye in the Big Ten Tournament. The Terps will next play on Friday.

Maryland entered the day fourth in the conference standings, but Wisconsin’s loss to Penn State Saturday moves it up to third, meaning the Terps will avoid No. 8 Michigan State until the championship game. They could move up an additional spot if the Spartans beat Michigan at home Sunday as well.

As it stands now, Maryland will likely play either Illinois or UCLA in the quarterfinals; the Terps beat both in the regular season.

Despite teams vying for the double-bye, Willard is not thrilled.

“We have not been good coming off byes,” Willard said, referring to the Terps’ losses in their West Coast road trip — to Washington and Oregon — and to Ohio State, in which they had four days of rest prior to both outings.