Tag: Maryland

LOOK: Former Wisconsin basketball guard visits a Big Ten rival

LOOK: Former Wisconsin basketball guard visits a Big Ten rival

Former Wisconsin basketball guard Connor Essegian took a visit to Big Ten rival Maryland, according to On3’s Joe Tipton.

Essegian departed after two years with the Badgers. The young guard had a fantastic freshman season in 2022-23 before losing much of his playing time in 2023-24. He averaged just 7.3 minutes and 3.2 points per game in 2023-24, down from 27.4 and 11.7, respectively, in 2022-23.

Related: Tracking Wisconsin basketball’s reported transfer portal visits and targets

He entered the portal last month after Wisconsin’s season came to a close with an NCAA Tournament loss to James Madison. The move was a bit of a surprise after a recent report indicated he might stick around. But it is not a surprise given his slide down the depth chart and outlook with the program.

Essegian was a fan-favorite in Madison — enough so that some fans were calling for him to play more down the stretch of the season. But those fans should recognize the grass is likely greener for him elsewhere given Wisconsin’s influx of backcourt talent.

With interest already reported between Essegian and Michigan, there appears to be more Big Ten teams in the mix.

 

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

[lawrence-related id=74034,73780,74398,73766,74030]

Former Notre Dame stars react to Baltimore bridge tragedy

Horrifying.

The United States awoke to the news and terrifying footage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsing into the causing it to collapse into the frigid Patapsco River in Baltimore on Tuesday.

As the investigation is underway and more details emerge, a pair of former Notre Dame football stars who now play for the Baltimore Ravens in the NFL shared their reactions to the event on social media.

First was safety Kyle Hamilton, who just finished his second season with the Ravens.  He’s followed by offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley who has played his entire NFL career in Baltimore, starting in 2016.

For more on the Francis Scott Key Bridge accident visit the USA TODAY website

 

Updated game-by-game predictions for Wisconsin basketball after its big win over Maryland

Think Wisconsin basketball has turned the corner?

Wisconsin basketball returned to the win column with a statement performance over the Maryland Terrapins on Tuesday.

The Badgers desperately needed a win, especially with Maryland entering as one of the worst teams in the Big Ten.

Greg Gard’s team took care of business thanks to 18 points on 6/9 shooting from Tyler Wahl, 14 points and a clutch three-pointer from Max Klesmit, 10 points and the dunk of the year from A.J. Storr and a solid contribution from John Blackwell off the bench.

Related: Wisconsin social media reacts to AJ Storr’s dunk of the year, Badgers win over Maryland

The biggest factor in the win: Wisconsin made 28 of 31 free throws (90.3%) compared to Maryland’s 17/23 clip. The Badgers have lost numerous games because that free throw number wasn’t up to par.

Now, Wisconsin has won two of its last three amid the February struggles. The rest of the schedule is a challenge, but Greg Gard’s team has a shot to steer the ship in the right direction entering March.

Here are ESPN BPI’s updated game-by-game predictions for the rest of the Badgers season:

Packers RB a good luck charm for Wisconsin in win over Maryland

Packers RB a good luck charm for Wisconsin in win over Maryland

Wisconsin basketball improved to 18-9 on the season and 10-6 in Big Ten play with a 74-70 win over Maryland Tuesday night.

The win signals a possible end to the Badgers’ February woes. Greg Gard’s team was 1-5 in the month entering the contest, including road collapses against Nebraska, Michigan and Iowa and a deflating home loss to Purdue. Well, the team could finally be turning a corner with just four games remaining in the Big Ten regular season.

Related: Which Big Ten football team has the toughest conference schedule in 2024?

The reason Wisconsin defeated Maryland is simple: the Badgers made 28 of their 31 free throws, good for a 90.3% clip. That includes nearly every free throw late in the game as well, even when the Terrapins seemed to hit every three-pointer to extend the game.

College basketball teams win when they make free throws. It’s that simple.

Or maybe Wisconsin’s win was due to something else, such as the presence of Packers starting running back A.J. Dillon sitting courtside.

Dillon’s wife is a Wisconsin alumnus, and his sister-in-law is on the Wisconsin cheerleading team.

I’m not going to create a cause-and-effect discussion here. But Wisconsin is now 1-0 in games Dillon is sitting courtside this season. That is a trend worth monitoring if he shows up at any games before the end of the year.

[lawrence-related id=70907,71210,70937,70751]

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

Wisconsin basketball bounces back with statement win over Maryland

Thoughts on the win over Maryland?

Wisconsin basketball returned to the win column with a 74-70 win over Maryland on Tuesday night.

Tyler Wahl led the way for the Badgers with 18 points on 6/9 shooting, while Max Klesmit added 14 points of his own including clutch free throws late, A.J. Storr had 10 points and John Blackwell notched a valuable nine points off the bench.

The key to the win: Wisconsin made 28 of 31 free throws (90.3%) compared to Maryland’s 17/23 clip. It sounds overly simple, but college basketball teams win games when free throws are just that, free.

The game was labeled a ‘must-win’ by many. Wisconsin had lost five of its last six, and in that time fallen from No. 6 in the country to out of the AP Poll entirely. Well, there are still sure to be skeptics about what Greg Gard’s team can do in March, but the gravity of tonight’s victory cannot be denied.

Yes, Maryland was only 14-12 (6-9 Big Ten) entering the evening and Wisconsin was heavily favored. But if a game is labeled a must-win, then credit must be given when the team does indeed win the game.

That is what we’re doing here. Wisconsin is now 18-9 (10-6 Big Ten) with four regular season games remaining. If Gard’s group can stack a few wins entering the Big Ten Tournament, then maybe the NCAA Tournament is viewed differently by Badgers fans.

After all, Wisconsin lost five of six in 2013-14 and went on to make the Final Four. A run is still possible.

[lawrence-related id=70907,71210,70937,70751]

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

How to watch Wisconsin basketball vs Maryland

How to watch Wisconsin basketball vs Maryland

The Wisconsin Badgers return to the basketball court Tuesday night against the Maryland Terrapins.

The Badgers enter after a crushing overtime loss to Iowa which dropped the team to 17-9 on the season and 9-6 in Big Ten play. The team has dropped five of its last six, has lost position in the Big Ten standings and is playing easily its worst basketball of the season.

[lawrence-related id=71119,70998]

Maryland, meanwhile, is 14-12 on the season and 6-9 in Big Ten play. It too is on a bit of a skid, dropping four of its last five games.

ESPN’s matchup simulator gives the Badgers a 83.1% chance to exit with a victory. I’m sure fans who have watched the last few weeks of Wisconsin basketball may disagree.

Tuesday’s game is yet another Peacock game, available only on the streaming service. Wisconsin defeated Ohio State in its last Peacock game, possibly signaling a good outcome in this contest.

Here is how and when to watch Wisconsin vs Maryland:

  • Date: Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2024
  • Time: 9 p.m. ET, 8 p.m. CT
  • TV Channel: Peacock (streaming only)

[lawrence-related id=70937,70839,70751]

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

The college basketball world mourned and remembered Lefty Driesell, the iconic Maryland coach

Driesell also coached Davidson, James Madison and Georgia State to NCAA Tournament appearances.

Charles “Lefty” Driesell – the brash coach with a tidewater drawl who is credited with putting the Maryland Terrapins on the men’s college basketball map after promising to make them the “UCLA of the east” – died on Saturday at his home in Virginia Beach at the age of 92, his family announced.

Driesell won 786 games in his career, with 348 of those coming as the head coach of the Terps. In different stints, he also coached at Davidson, James Madison and Georgia State. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018.

One of the signature personalities in the ACC in the 1970s and 80s, Lefty could be fiery, funny, charming and sharp. Before his arrival in College Park, Maryland, the Terps had only been to the NCAA Tournament once. After coaching them to an NIT title in 1972, Lefty led the Terps to eight NCAA Tournament appearances, including two trips to the Elite Eight. Maryland won two regular season ACC titles under his watch and an ACC Tournament in 1984.

The two-time ACC Coach of the Year was forced out of Maryland and shouldered much of the blame for the shocking death of Len Bias in 1986 after the All-American and No. 2 overall pick in the NBA Draft died from a cocaine overdose.

Two years later, Lefty returned to coaching and built James Madison into a mid-major power, leading the Dukes to five regular season CAA titles. He became the coach at Georgia State in 1997 and won four regular season ASUN titles. In all, Driesell coached four different programs to NCAA Tournament appearances.

Driesell is also credited with starting “Midnight Madness” at Maryland in 1971. Today, many college basketball programs across the country host a similar event to mark the first day of practice with fanfare.

His coaching tree lives on in women’s college basketball through Virginia Tech’s Kenny Brooks, who played and coached under Lefty at James Madison. A year ago, as the Hokies were making their first-ever run to the Final Four, Brooks said this of Driesell:

“When I played for him, I will be very honest, I thought he was the craziest man in the world. I got to work with him, and I got to see him from a different side. You know, things he was doing to us — we thought he was doing them to us — but he was actually doing them for us; very generous man. He made me a better player, but he made me a better person. I’m a better man because of his coaching. I’m a better father because of it.”

The college basketball world mourned the death of Driesell on Saturday with tributes and memories of the iconic coach:

Five Keys to Michigan State basketball’s huge 61-59 road victory over Maryland

Only three teams have beaten Maryland in College Park the past two years. Here’s how MSU became one of them:

Michigan State basketball finally got their first Big Ten road win of the season on Sunday with a 61-59 road win over Maryland.

They definitely had to work for it though, as you’d expect, as only two other teams have managed to beat Maryland in College Park in the past two season.

After going into the half up 12, the Terrapins stormed back and outscored the Spartans by 10 in the second half and put the pressure on MSU, but some late game heroics by a few of the MSU guards sealed this win for MSU.

Below, we put together a list of five important keys to this one and what led to this important road win.

Michigan State basketball holds on to secure vital road win over Maryland

The Spartans gave their NCAA Tournament hopes a huge boost with a road win over Maryland on Sunday

This term gets thrown around a lot this time of year in college basketball, but Michigan State basketball’s road game against Maryland on Sunday was pretty close to a ‘must win’ for the Spartans. In a game that became extremely competitive towards the final buzzer, as Big Ten games often do, MSU was able to hold on to secure a very important road win over the Terrapins, 61-59.

The Spartans held a 12-point lead at halftime, but went ice cold from the floor and were outscored by Maryland 27 to 17 in the second half, but a late Tyson Walker three and a nice Tre Holloman steal at the end of regulation sealed the win for the Spartans.

Walker led the way with 15 points and Malik Hall, A.J. Hoggard and Tre Holloman all added 12 points each.

MSU will face one of their hardest tests of the season on Friday when they travel to Madison to face No. 11 Wisconsin.

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Andrew Brewster on Twitter @IAmBrewster.

Michigan State Women’s basketball takes down Maryland to get twelfth win of the season

Michigan State Women’s basketball takes down Maryland to get twelfth win of the season

Don’t look now, but the Michigan State Women’s basketball team is on a roll under new head coach Robyn Fralick. If you haven’t been tuned into this dynamic Spartans’ team, this is your signal to tap in. On Tuesday night, MSU notched their twelfth win of the season against Maryland, taking down the Terrapins 74-69.

Moira Joiner and Julia Ayrault led the way with 20 points each, and floor general DeeDee Hagemann added 12 points and seven assists.

Michigan State is now 12-3 on the season, with one of those losses coming on a buzzer beater on the road from Iowa, the darlings of college basketball right now.

Gallery: Best photos from Michigan State Women’s basketball’s win over Maryland

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Andrew Brewster on Twitter @IAmBrewster.