Maryland basketball is a No. 9 seed in the first 2016-17 version of ESPN’s Bracketology, in which Joe Lunardi projects the March Madness field of 64.
Lunardi pits Maryland against eighth-seeded California in the South region with Kentucky as the No. 1 seed. A depleted Cal team lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament last year to Hawaii, whom Maryland beat in the Round of 32. The fifth-seeded Terps went on to lose to No. 1 Kansas in the Sweet 16.
In 2015, Maryland was a No. 4 seed.
It might be jarring to some to see the Terps ranked this low, but it’s appropriate. This team is full of question marks. We can be pretty confident Melo Trimble will provide consistent production, but that’s about it. With multiple new faces being counted on to contribute, and Dion Wiley coming back from an injury, anything could happen.
Maryland plays an exhibition against Catawba on Saturday and opens the regular season at home against American University on Friday, Nov. 11.
