COLLEGE PARK — Four days removed from scoring a career-high 31 points against then-No. 18 Iowa, Anthony Cowan said he doesn’t feel his recent stretch of games is the best he’s played in his basketball career.
“Not really,” Cowan said. “I still haven’t really been shooting it how I really want to, as consistent as I can. Probably decision-making has been a little bit better, but it’s not where I want to be at right now. I still got a little bit more to go.”
Even if there is another level to Cowan’s game during the back half of his senior campaign at Maryland, his coaches and teammates are already happy with how far he’s come. From improved judgment and court vision to becoming a more vocal leader, the star guard is providing just what the Terrapins have needed to scale to the top of the packed Big Ten.
Cowan scored in all three phases Thursday to finish with 31 along with six rebounds and six assists, an effort for which he was rewarded with Big Ten Player of the Week honors on Monday. Later in the day, Cowan and teammate Jalen Smith were both named to the Late Season Top-20 List for the John R. Wooden Award, which recognizes the nation’s best player.
By beating Iowa — and having the five teams directly ahead of them in the polls suffer a loss last week — the Terrapins leapt six spots to No. 9 in the new Associated Press men’s basketball poll.
That aside, Maryland (17-4, 7-3 Big Ten) will be particularly tested in the next two weeks. First up Tuesday is Rutgers, a surprise contender in the Big Ten that fell out of the Top 25 this week and rates 28th in the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET). Then Maryland must visit No. 20 Illinois, and two games after that, No. 16 Michigan State.
In Cowan, Maryland has what few of its Big Ten rivals can match: a senior star who has experienced big stages, who can both take over a game on the court and impart necessary wisdom and motivation onto his teammates.
Michigan State is led by senior guard Cassius Winston, and upstart No. 22 Penn State has a pair of seniors playing crucial roles in Lamar Stevens and Mike Watkins. But the other top teams in the Big Ten just don’t have the equivalent of Maryland’s floor general, who is both the Terrapins’ top scorer (16.2 per game) and assists leader (4.3 per game).
“Anthony’s seen everything, done everything,” Terrapins coach Mark Turgeon said. “He’s played in a ton of big games. He knows the longevity of the season and what lies ahead, and all that kind of stuff. So he can stay pretty even-keeled. And that’s one thing I think we do a nice job of. We don’t get too high, we don’t get too low. Around here it’s not that way.”
Sophomore guard Eric Ayala has seen Cowan evolve as a leader from the start of last season to now.
“Our sophomore group, we kind of had a big class and we’re kind of a big part of our rotation,” Ayala said. “He’s taken the time to really build up individual relationships with each one of us. It’s helped us (to) be willing to follow his lead and stuff like that.”
Cowan wasn’t known as a particularly vocal leader before this season, but as Maryland’s lone senior playing any sort of meaningful role, he’s embraced the job for the past several months. He said Monday he’s glad it comes to him more comfortably now, that he isn’t forcing it.
“It’s just the voice my teammates want to hear, especially when we’ve been going through a little adversity during the game,” Cowan said.
Turgeon recalled a moment earlier this season when Cowan took control of a huddle during a timeout.
“We were up 11, or maybe it was 10,” Turgeon said. “He was barking about the things that I wanted him yelling at them about. He wouldn’t have done that, wouldn’t have felt comfortable doing that (before). He wouldn’t have been sure he was saying the right things. Now he’s confident he’s saying the right things.
“His leadership in the locker room, in huddles, over in the dorms, it’s what you want.”
It helps that Cowan is supported by strong role players as part of a nine-man rotation, similar to last year’s roster but with more experience for Ayala, Smith, Aaron Wiggins and Ricky Lindo Jr.
Cowan “has the mindset this year that he really trusts the guys around him,” Turgeon said. “It’s exhausting to have to be the guy every night, especially at five-ten.”
Turgeon didn’t want to preview the gauntlet of Big Ten opponents ahead, saying he couldn’t think beyond Rutgers, who will look to bounce back from a loss to Michigan.
As bracket prognosticators say the conference has 12 of its 14 teams vying for NCAA Tournament bids, the Terrapins won’t overlook Rutgers, nor anyone else left.
“They (Rutgers) play with a lot of intensity,” Cowan said. “They’re just a really solid team all-around. There’s obviously no nights off in the Big Ten. Rutgers is gonna come in and play us hard and we just gotta be prepared for it.”
• Adam Zielonka can be reached at azielonka@washingtontimes.com.
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