Forward Jake Layman has seen a decline in his scoring production this season, but Terrapins men’s basketball coach Mark Turgeon has routinely commended his senior’s play. After Layman scored nine points in the Terps’ win against Northwestern on Saturday, Turgeon said Layman was “terrific.”
It’s because of what the Wrentham, Massachusetts, native is doing outside of scoring.
With the addition of offensive stars around him, Layman has found other ways to impact the game, such as rebounding and on defense.
“Jake is becoming a complete player,” Turgeon said after Saturday’s game. “Everybody gets caught up in scoring. He doesn’t have to score every night for us to be successful. He will as the year goes on, but he’s really become a complete player.”
When former star guard Dez Wells missed seven games last season with a broken wrist, Layman was thrust into a more prominent offensive role. Layman averaged 17.3 points per game during that stretch, a significant increase from his 12.5 season average.
Layman finished last season as the team’s third leading scorer, but he’s fallen to fourth on the Terps in his final year, and he’s just 0.1 points ahead of guard Rasheed Sulaimon. Layman’s season average is down nearly two points from last season.
And during his past 10 games, Layman has eclipsed double figures just twice. By comparison, he scored at least 10 points in 29 of 35 games last season.
Despite that, Layman’s win shares per 40 minutes — a statistic that shows how much he contributes to his team winning per every minute he’s on the floor — is at a career high .184, according to sports-reference.com.
“He has a big chance to affect the game in other ways,” Sulaimon said. “He’s realized that. As a team, we want that out of him.”
At 6-foot-9, Layman possesses athleticism rarely seen at his length in college basketball. He can spot up on the wing or he can pound the ball in the post. Plus, he can guard a variety of players.
During a 17-second sequence in the second half against Northwestern, Layman swatted away a pair of shots and secured a defensive rebound. He ranks second on the team in rebounds, and third in steals and blocks.
“Jake has really rare physical tools,” Sulaimon said. “He can really affect the game on the boards [and] on the defensive end blocking shots.”
Pundits and fans have knocked Layman at times this season for not being aggressive enough on offense. More than half of his shots are coming from behind the arc, where he’s shooting his worst percentage since his freshman campaign.
But he was strong attacking the basket Saturday when he finished 4-for-8 from the floor, including 3-for-4 inside the three-point line.
“I was playing more aggressive,” Layman said. “I like how I was rebounding. My shots started falling.”
With the additions of scoring threats Robert Carter Jr., Diamond Stone and Sulaimon, who are all averaging double figures, Layman isn’t required to be the guy averaging 17.3 points per game like when Wells was out last year.
Still, his teammates and coaches understand the effect he’s having elsewhere.
“His game is really evolving,” Turgeon said, “which is good to see.”
