The Maryland men’s basketball team didn’t have much to play for in its regular season finale at Penn State, save for the modest incentive of a better seed in the Big Ten tournament, where the slumping Terrapins will need an improbable title run to earn a spot in the NCAA tournament.
That explains why ailing 6-foot-9 junior forward Julian Reese, Maryland’s second-leading scorer, spent Sunday night on the bench watching an 85-69 loss at Bryce-Jordan Center in State College, Pa.
Health has become the most important variable for the Terps (15-16, 7-13) with the postseason at hand, and they’ll need Reese as close as possible to full strength to have any chance of winning five games in as many nights to claim the Big Ten tournament title.