A light schedule Wednesday night left all eyes on UCLA at Maryland. That was bad news for Maryland. Final score: Bruins 87, Terrapins 60.
It’s not often that you see a home favorite trail by as many as 38 and lose by 27, but that’s exactly what happened to Maryland inside the Xfinity Center. UCLA shot 55.6% from the field, 41.7% from 3-point range and 85.7% from the free throw line in the blowout. It was an unimaginable beatdown from the opening tip to the final horn.
“Getting beat down every once in a while is not the worst thing in the world,” said first-year Maryland coach Kevin Willard.
I suppose he’s right.
But getting beat down like that, at home, to extend a losing streak to three games is the type of thing that’s costly from a résumé perspective. That’s why Maryland has been removed from Thursday morning’s updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings. Virginia Tech — Mike Young’s 10-1 team that’s on a five-game winning streak featuring victories over North Carolina, Oklahoma State and Dayton — has replaced the Terrapins in the Top 25 And 1.
UCLA started this season 3-2 with zero notable wins and losses to Baylor and Illinois. Not great. But the Bruins have responded with a six-game winning streak featuring victories over Maryland, Oregon and Stanford. Not bad. Five Bruins are averaging double figures in scoring for a UCLA team that ranks third nationally in adjusted offensive efficiency, according to KenPom.com. Preseason All-American Jaime Jaquez is averaging a team-high 17.1 points and 5.5 rebounds per contest.
Next up for UCLA is Saturday’s showdown with Kentucky in the CBS Sports Classic inside New York’s Madison Square Garden. UCLA is 18th in the Top 25 And 1. Kentucky is 14th.
