Another day, another don’t-let-up matchup in Big Ten play for Illinois. Not a great deal seems to separate the No. 17 Illini (13-5, 5-3 Big Ten) and Maryland (14-5, 4-4) on paper, and it should be obvious to Illinois’ young roster by now that there is no such thing as a gimme during the conference season. (See USC.)

So when the Illini face the Terrapins on Thursday at the State Farm Center in Champaign (8 p.m. CT, on FS1), they should put Sunday’s stinging loss at Michigan State in their rear view and leave an upcoming revenge game with Northwestern on the back-burner. The Terps have beaten UCLA, took Northwestern to overtime and made a run at Purdue. They are not to be trifled with.

With all that in mind, here are three bold predictions to track in Thursday’s Illinois-Maryland game:

Derik Queen is Maryland’s 6-foot-10 freshman workhorse (15.1 points, 8.1 rebounds per game), and whether Johnson gets the call to check him on defense, he likely will make frequent contact with Queen on the other end of the floor. With 6-foot-9 forward Julian Reese also playing big minutes for the Terps, Illini coach Brad Underwood will almost play Johnson well over his usual 14.9 minutes per game.

Johnson’s hulking 6-foot-9, 255-pound frame and strength likely make him a better matchup against Queen than center Tomislav Ivisic. Moreover, Queen tends to fall back on his physical gifts and fade at times, and if he provides that opening Thursday in Champaign, the relentless Johnson will wear him out.

Rhyme or reason? There has been none of it when trying to predict whether the Illini will hit their shots. Home, road, Big Ten, non-conference, weekday or weekend, morning, noon or night – there has been no pattern to the wild fluctuations of their three-point shooting (32.7 percent), which now rates as the second-worst mark in the Big Ten.

So why should they break out against Maryland? Because they’re due? Because it’s a Thursday? Because Mercury is in retrograde? Look, these Illini can shoot it – we know this. And Maryland’s defensive style will create open looks and opportunities for the home team to find a groove. Maybe the Illini don’t go off as they did against Arkansas or Oregon, but it’s time for them to start stringing together a few more makes from distance.

The Terps love to gamble and mix it up on D. They will press full and three-quarters court, they’ll collapse and trap, they’ll dig and double, lunge, leave their feet and jump lanes. And it often works – especially against opponents who can’t handle they’re length and athleticism. But they’re aggressiveness hasn’t been as effective against Big Ten competition.

It’ll be a particularly dangerous game to play against Illinois. The Illini are young, play at a high pace and cough up a few too many possessions, but they’re also devastating in transition and pass unselfishly and effectively when opponents overplay. Expect Illinois to exceed its per-game average of 11.6 turnovers – and also torch the Terps on the fastbreak and when they get greedy in the halfcourt.

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