How To Watch
Who: Maryland Terrapins Record: 7-10, 0-6 Big Ten When: Sunday, January 18th, 12:00 p.m. EST Where: Xfinity Center, College Park, MD Kenpom Ranking (PSU): 126 (108) TV: BTN Radio: Penn State Sports Network
Vegas Line: Penn State +2.5 Over/Under: 147
What To Watch For
- Who will step up for Freddie?
- The guard situation has gone from bad to worse with Wednesday’s injury to guard Freddie Dilione. Dilione has stepped up recently after Penn State lost freshman standout Kayden Mingo to an injury. It remains to be seen when Mingo will return, but in the meantime, players like Dominick Stewart, who led the team with 16 points, five rebounds, and three assists, will need to considerably increase their production to give the team a shot.
- Will Penn State not play down to their competition?
- One thing that’s evident if you’ve watched this season is that the good guys have played their four toughest Big Ten teams very tough. It started with a four-point loss to Michigan State in mid-December. After getting blown out by Pittsburgh, most fans, and almost everyone in the BSD basketball Slack, thought the next three games would go very poorly to start 2026. A week later, they had two eight-point losses to Illinois and Purdue, with a two-point devastating defeat to then-unbeaten Michigan (A game in which the Wolverines were favored by over 20 points). The fight they have shown against top competition hasn’t seemed to translate to average or bad conference foes, as UCLA closed out the Nittany Lions in the second half, winning by 11. Now, facing the bottom of the conference, can Penn State play the way they are capable of playing? In the same vein…
- Can the Nittany Lions win a conference game?
- I know it’s on the road, but if Penn State is going to avoid being winless in the Big Ten, this is their best shot. These two teams only play once this season, and while the back half of the Nittany Lions’ conference slate is considerably less challenging than their first six contests, they still have games at Michigan, at Nebraska, and home against Wisconsin (who just defeated the Wolverines).
Prediction
I really want to pick Penn State, but I am traditionally a jinx for the Blue and White. The last preview I did, I picked the correct margin of victory though! I’ll give the edge to the turtles because they are at home, and the road team is missing two of their best offensive players.
Maryland 76, Penn State 72
