The Ohio State Buckeyes and the Maryland Terrapins meet Thursday in college basketball action from Xfinity Center College Park. Here’s a Maryland vs Ohio State prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Maryland vs Ohio State pick.
Ohio State Buckeyes Betting Preview
The Buckeyes managed to get through their first six games this year unscathed, but then lost three of the next five games versus Pittsburgh, Illinois and North Carolina. Ohio State hit a 3-2 run in the next five outings with losses to Nebraska and Washington. Since then the Buckeyes are 3-2 with wins over UCLA, Minnesota and Penn State alongside losses to Michigan and Wisconsin. That gives Ohio State a 14-7 record this year so far.
In the Wisconsin game on Saturday the Buckeyes entered the second half with a 49-43 deficit. Ohio State was outscored 43-39 from there so they didn’t end up getting any closer in an eventual 92-82 loss on the road. Both Amare Bynum (seven rebounds) and Bruce Thornton (three rebounds; two assists) each had a team-high 18 points. Devin Royal added 16 points with six rebounds in the losing effort as well.
Maryland Terrapins Betting Preview
Over on the Maryland side, they managed to win five of their first six games this year. The Terrapins have won just three games since then amid a very difficult schedule, however. The losses otherwise during that time came versus Gonzaga, Alabama, Iowa, Michigan, Virginia, Oregon, Indiana, UCLA, USC, Illinois, Michigan State and Purdue. Over the first 21 games of the season that gives the Terrapins an 8-13 record in the books.
Matched up against Purdue on Sunday the Terrapins were down 49-28 by the end of the first half. Maryland was outscored 44-35 the rest of the way and ended up falling in blowout fashion at home 93-63 in the end. Andre Mills topped the team in the losing effort with his 18 points, six rebounds and three assists while Darius Adams added 17 points with six rebounds. Solomon Washington put up 14 points with four boards in the defeat.
Why the Maryland Terrapins will win
- Maryland has won each of its last nine games at XFINITY Center when playing with a rest disadvantage.
- Ohio State has lost each of its last three road games.
- The home team has won the first half in each of Ohio State’s last five games.
Why the Ohio State Buckeyes will win
- Maryland has lost 10 of its last 11 games against Conference opponents.
- Ohio State has won 10 of its last 11 night games against non-AP-ranked opponents.
- Maryland has lost the first half in seven of its last eight games.
Maryland vs Ohio State Prediction
I’ll just stick with Ohio State in this one. The Buckeyes couldn’t quite keep pace in a road matchup versus Wisconsin last weekend, hitting a tepid 40.6 percent from the field with a 42-30 deficit on points in the paint. Ohio State did well at the line (16-of-18 for 88.9 percent) but also allowed 51.6 percent shooting on defense. The Buckeyes are still scoring very well this year; they’ve hit 69 or more points in 13 of the last 14 games and should post a decent total in this one if all goes well.
As for Maryland, they weren’t able to get anywhere near a great Purdue team in their latest outing—even at home. The Terrapins shot just 38.8 percent from the field while giving up 52.7 percent on the other side. Maryland’s 35-24 rebounding deficit didn’t help matters either. The Terrapins have lost seven of their last eight games—but to be fair they’ve played some tough squads in that time. Maryland has also given up 89 or more points in three straight, but those were all versus ranked teams.