Opponent: Iowa Hawkeyes (9-8, 0-4 Big Ten)
Location: Xfinity Center, College Park, Maryland
Tipoff date/time: Sunday, Jan. 7 at 8 p.m.
Last game: Maryland lost to Michigan State 91-61, Iowa lost to Ohio State 92-81
Last meeting: Iowa beat Maryland 83-69 on Feb. 25, 2017
TV: FS1 — Tim Brando and Stephen Bardo
Streaming: foxsportsgo.com
Radio: Maryland Sports Radio Network (105.7 FM Baltimore and ESPN 980 AM Washington, D.C.) — Johnny Holliday, Chris Knoche and Walt Williams
Student radio: WMUC Sports — Justin Gallanty and Jarred Belman
Spread: Maryland -8.5 (via Odds Shark)
Kenpom prediction: Maryland wins, 79-70
What to watch for Maryland: Perimeter defense
Michigan State absolutely torched Maryland on 3-pointers in East Lansing. The Spartans hit 16 of them, making more than 50 percent of their shots beyond the arc on their way to scoring 91 points. You don’t need to be John Wooden to know that letting a team making 16 threes means there’s a really good chance you’ll lose. The Hawkeyes have shot at least 40 percent from deep in their last two Big Ten games, so the Terps will find themselves facing another test of their ability to defend the three.
What to watch for Iowa: Making their free throws
In the Hawkeyes’ four Big Ten games, they’ve made 64.3 percent of their free throws, putting them dead last in the conference. Their worst Big Ten performance came when they made less than 50 percent of their free throws against Indiana in December.
Iowa’s main problem stems from two players: Luka Garza and Cordell Pemsl. Together, they’re shooting 56.5 percent from the charity stripe on 5.8 attempts per conference game. So even if Michal Cekovsky, Bruno Fernando and co. get into foul trouble again, there’s no guarantee the Hawkeyes will capitalize.
