At some point, Ohio State coach Thad Matta is going to have face reality. Perhaps it’ll be on his team’s flight home from College Park. Maybe he’ll delay the pain and wait a few days.
But eventually, Matta will need to look back at the film from his team’s 100-65 drubbing at the hands of the Terrapins men’s basketball team Saturday.
He’ll relive the Terps hitting 62.7 percent of their shots. He’ll relive the Terps holding his team to 8-for-27 shooting in the second. He’ll relive coach Mark Turgeon’s squad completely outplaying his in every facet of the game.
Then he’ll have to make sense of it all.
While the Buckeyes, who defeated then-No. 4 Kentucky, 74-67 on Dec. 19 didn’t play their best basketball, this wasn’t merely the No. 3 Terps taking advantage of a couple mistakes. This was the Terps flexing their muscles for the whole country to see, playing near flawless basketball two months away from tournament time.
“Maryland played as well maybe any team I’ve ever coached against,” Matta said.
Here are my postgame grades:
Guard Melo Trimble: B+
Trimble didn’t put together an explosive scoring night with eight points, but he didn’t have to. He dazzled with nine assists, regularly finding his big men in the paint for easy layups. At one point, he brought the Terps fans to their feet with an alley-oop pass to forward Diamond Stone.
Guard Rasheed Sulaimon: A
Sulaimon rebounded from the Michigan game in the form of 22 points on 9-for-10 shooting. He made easy work of the Buckeyes’ backcourt, getting to the rim at will. He had five assists, too.
Forward Jake Layman: B
Layman only scored 10 points but was an active force in the paint. On one possession in the first half, he battled against several taller defenders before finishing his layup. And he forced the steal that Sulaimon turned into the buzzer-beater that capped the first half. Turning the ball over four times is never good, but Layman and the Terps did plenty to capture the win.
Forward Robert Carter Jr.: A
Carter was working out at Xfinity Center at 6:30 a.m. Saturday. He wanted to hone his craft. The extra word paid dividends, as the 6-foot-9 forward turned in his best performance with the Terps yet. He finished with a career-high 25 points on 10-for-13 shooting, including 4-for-4 from long range. “What Carter did tonight was incredible,” Matta said.
Forward Diamond Stone: B+
Amidst Carter and Sulaimon’s big days, Stone’s 15 points came quietly. He also had six rebounds and a block.