Maryland men’s basketball opens its exhibition slate Sunday with plenty of questions and a few obvious places to start.
The Terps meet former ACC rival Georgia Tech at UMBC’s Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena, giving Buzz Williams his second season in College Park a first real look at a roster that has been rebuilt with an eye on getting back to the NCAA Tournament. After last year ended with Maryland’s worst winning percentage in 37 years, this is the first step on the road to redemption.
The biggest name to watch is Pharrel Payne, and not just because he was one of 11 players selected to the preseason All-Big Ten team. Sunday will be the first chance to see him in game action since he suffered a season-ending leg injury against Michigan last December. Payne received a medical waiver this offseason and is back for another year with the Terps.
When he was healthy, Payne was Maryland’s steadiest scorer on the interior and its top overall player. The 6-foot-9, 250-pound big man averaged 17.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 10 games before the injury shut him down.
Maryland’s ceiling depends heavily on whether Payne looks like himself again. Can he handle extended stretches?
Does he get tired? Is he moving well laterally?
Does he still explode at the rim on defense? Sunday should offer the first clues about how far along he is.
His fit with New Mexico transfer Tomislav Buljan is another key subplot. Buljan, also 6-foot-9 and 250 pounds, led the Mountain West in rebounding and double-doubles last season and set the New Mexico single-season record for offensive rebounds.
Put the two together and Maryland could own the glass in a way that fits Williams’ preferred style, creating extra chances all game long. But there’s a catch: neither player stretches the floor.
Payne has taken just one 3-pointer over his previous four college seasons, and Buljan shot 30.8% from deep last year on 26 attempts. If Williams uses them together too often, the lane could get crowded in a hurry.
Another major piece is Baba Oladotun, the centerpiece of Maryland’s four-player freshman class. The Silver Spring native is 6-foot-10 and 205 pounds, and he was the top-rated prospect in ESPN’s class of 2027 recruiting rankings before reclassifying to the class of 2026 and committing to the Terps. His frame, length and perimeter skill have led to comparisons with Kevin Durant.
That’s a lot to ask of any freshman, and especially one who is still developing and played only two games during his senior season because of injury. Even so, the talent is easy to see.
Maryland needs a third scoring option behind Payne and redshirt sophomore guard Andre Mills, who became the team’s best perimeter scorer late last season. Sunday will show how close Oladotun is to handling that responsibility against power conference competition.
Then there’s D.J. Wagner, who may be the answer to Maryland’s point guard problem.
Last season, the Terps were missing the kind of lead guard that has long defined the program, from Steve Blake and Greivis Vasquez to Melo Trimble and Anthony Cowan. Maryland ranked 332nd out of 365 Division I teams in assist rate, finishing with an assist on just 45.2% of its made field goals. David “Diggy” Coit led the team at 2.8 assists per game, and nobody else averaged more than 1.6.
The offensive struggles weren’t just about shot-making. Maryland needed someone who could organize possessions and create for others, not just take tough shots. Wagner, a former five-star prospect who played his freshman year at Kentucky under John Calipari before following him to Arkansas for the next two seasons, looks like the best candidate.
At 6-foot-4 and 190 pounds, Wagner brings burst, rim pressure and the kind of attacking mentality Maryland lacked last year. He’s shown he can run a team, too. In Arkansas’ 89-79 win over Kentucky at Rupp Arena in 2025, Wagner posted 17 points, eight assists and just one turnover.
He has also had stretches where turnovers have been an issue, including a 1.6 assist-to-turnover ratio during his sophomore season. Last year, he moved into more of an off-ball role next to SEC Player of the Year Darius Acuff and spent much of conference play coming off the bench.
His numbers dipped, but his 3-point shooting and assist-to-turnover ratio improved. He didn’t complain about the role change, and he scored 11 points off the bench in Arkansas’ SEC tournament title game win over Vanderbilt.
That blend of experience and team-first play could matter just as much as his ability to create offense. If Wagner can handle the ball, score, distribute, defend and keep the mistakes down, Maryland’s backcourt starts to look a lot more dangerous.
Sunday should give the Terps their first real look at how much is there.
In Other News...
Maryland Faces A Brutal Mike Locksley Test In Columbus
Maryland heads into Columbus with the kind of challenge that tells you exactly where a program stands. Mike Locksleys team, sitting at 2-3, is trying to find some offensive rhythm behind quarterback Malik Washington and receiver Chris Durr Jr. while also leaning on a pass rush that has been one of the more encouraging parts of the roster. Facing No. 5 Ohio State is a demanding assignment on its own, but it also brings a familiar edge for a Terps program that has spent this season searching for a steadier identity.
The Buckeyes bring their own issues into the matchup, even with Julian Sayin and Jeremiah Smith giving them plenty of firepower. Maryland has enough disruption up front to make this interesting if it can keep the game from getting away early, and that makes Locksleys group worth watching beyond the records on paper. It is the sort of Big Ten test that can expose flaws quickly, but it can also reveal whether the Terps have enough backbone to make a top-ranked opponent work for every clean snap. [Read more 🡒]
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The concern starts in the secondary, where Marylands depth is being tested at exactly the wrong time. Jamare Glasker and Jayden Shipps are doubtful, while Amari Jackson is questionable, leaving the Terps to sort through their options against an Ohio State offense that rarely gives opponents much breathing room. Marylands defensive rotation could also look different with Dontay Joyner in line for a season debut, adding another layer of uncertainty as the Terps try to keep the game manageable long enough to have a chance late. [Read more 🡒]