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11/27 Big Ten Preview: Louisville vs. Maryland

Preview Saturday’s Big Ten action.

NCAA Basketball: George Mason at Maryland Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

As everyone continues to finish off the Thanksgiving leftovers today, there are a host of Big Ten games to choose from today. Among the top options includes Louisville versus Maryland in the Baha Mar Hoops Bahamas Championship final.

Let’s take a look at the schedule.

Game of the Day:

-Louisville Cardinals vs. Maryland Terrapins

  • Time/TV: 10:00AM EST (CBS Sports Network)
  • Tallysight Spread: Maryland -1.5

The Terps come into this matchup after a huge second half rally against Richmond on Thursday, while Louisville cruised past Mississippi State to advance to the championship game. The matchup is the first between the programs since Maryland won at the Maui Invitations on Nov. 20, 2000. However, the Cardinals lead the all-time series 5-2.

Louisville this year is a tough squad and poses a challenge for the Terps. With Chris Mack at the helm in his fourth season, the Cardinals feature a full team effort in the scoring department. The deep rotation allows a lot of fresh legs for Louisville, however, which can be incredibly valuable in these short tournament games like today. Just guard Noah Locke is averaging double figures at 13.2 points per game so far this season, while seven other players average between 5.0 and 9.6 points per game. Forward Mark Williams leads the team on the glass with 9.4 rebounds per game, guard Mason Faulkner leads with helpers at 3.0 per game, and guard Jarrod West leads the team with 2.0 steals per game.

Maryland will need to figure out its three-point shooting in this matchup to have a shot. The Terps overcome poor outside shooting and keep pace with Louisville’s scoring. It will also be interesting to see if UMD tries to push the pace at all given Louisville’s fresh legs with a heavy rotation. This one could be a real nail biter down to the finish.

  • Pick: Maryland

The Rest:

-South Dakota Coyotes vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers

  • Time/TV: 2:00PM EST (B1G+)
  • Tallysight Spread: Nebraska -12

The Nebraska Cornhuskers wrap up the team’s MTE with South Dakota this afternoon. Both UNL and South Dakota are 2-0 in the event. USD returned four starters from a team that went 14-11 last season, but lost A.J. Plitzuweit to a knee injury. Nebraska should be able to add a badly needed win to the win column and move on to prep for the ACC/Big Ten Challenge road trip coming up next week.

  • Pick: Nebraska

-Rutgers Scarlet Knights at UMass

  • Time/TV: 2:00PM EST (NBCSports.com)
  • Tallysight Spread: Rutgers -1.5

The Scarlet Knights are in Amherst, Massachusetts to take on the UMass Minutemen. UMass is undefeated at home this season and is outscoring its opponents by a combined 30 points at the Mullins Center so far. The Minutemen had the top offense in the Atlantic 10 last season and averaged 76.7 points per game. RU should be able to easily limit that this season, but will likely find the matchup a challenge given its own offensive struggles.

  • Pick: Rutgers

-Marshall at Indiana Hoosiers

  • Time/TV: 7:00PM EST (Big Ten Network)
  • Tallysight Spread: Indiana -13

Indiana enters this matchup at a perfect 5-0 while Marshall comes in at 3-1. IU should be able to make it 6-0 in this one as the Hoosiers are the clear favorites over the Bison. Trayce Jackson-Davis should be able to potentially up his season average in scoring just a tad thanks to this game while IU can quickly finish off the matchup and move on to getting ready for a road trip to Syracuse.

  • Pick: Indiana