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11/17 Big Ten Recap: Mixed Results

Recap all the Big Ten action from Wednesday.

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

The Big Ten had three games on Wednesday night. And while most of the initial attention was focused elsewhere, Maryland’s game against George Mason ended up attracting the most attention, as the Terps went down in dramatic fashion.

Let’s take a look at what happened.

Game of the Night:

-George Mason Patriots 71, No. 20 Maryland Terrapins 66

Maryland entered this game as a solid favorite and started things off pretty well. However, George Mason started gaining momentum at the 10-minute mark in the first half and really never looked back. The Colonials controlled the game thereafter and ended up scoring a 71-66 upset win on the road against the Terps.

Obviously, a lot went wrong here for Maryland. To start, the team’s defense throughly underwhelmed. George Mason scored 1.13 points per possession and D’Shawn Schwartz went off for 24 points and nine rebounds. Additionally, the team’s role players did little. as guys like Fatts Russell and Hakim Hart struggled all game. Eric Ayala was one of the few bright spots, finishing with 17 points, four rebounds, and four assists. Maryland also struggled on the boards, getting outrebounded by a pretty small George Mason team.

Maryland will now have to lick its wounds and get ready for a game against Hofstra at home on Friday night. Again, it’s a game the Terps should win. However, Hofstra is ranked similarly to George Mason on KenPom, so it could get interesting. It’s still too early to panic over this Maryland team. We’ll have to just wait and see.

The Rest:

-Indiana Hoosiers 76, St. John’s Red Storm 74

This was a great game. One team would take the lead and the other would respond in turn. Indiana got up early, but St. John’s clawed back in the second half and got things relatively close before the closing minutes. Ultimately, Indiana grabbed the 76-74 win. Trayce Jackson-Davis led the way with 18 points and 10 rebounds.

Indiana now sits at 3-0 and is really starting to look like a sleeper. The Hoosiers had a rough game against Eastern Michigan, but have looked good since. And St. John’s is no joke. The Red Storm are 43rd on KenPom and projected to be a decent squad.

The Hoosiers will hope to keep things going on Sunday at home against Louisiana. It’s another chance to prove themselves against a competent opponent.

-Michigan State Spartans 73, Butler Bulldogs 52

This was easily the Big Ten’s best showing in the Gavitt Games so far. The Spartans entered this game as modest favorites, but cruised to a 21-point road win. Max Christie led the way with 18 points and Gabe Brown had 19 of his own. Butler also struggled to score against Michigan State’s defense, finishing with an abysmal 0.75 points per possession.

The Spartans now sit at 2-1 overall with Eastern Michigan awaiting them on Saturday before the team’s Thanksgiving trip to Atlantis. It should be a fun couple of weeks for the program.