The Maryland Terrapins had many potential early-season concerns, but with head coach Buzz Williams bringing Pharrel Payne to College Park, it was certain that the star could help the drowning team. Leading the 2-1 team in points and rebounds, that was certainly the aim as they entered Milwaukee. However, against the Marquette Golden Eagles, the team huddled not to plan a strategy but to pray as the young forward’s fate met a shocking turn.

With 12:14 left in the regulation, Payne went up for a two-handed dunk for his 13th point of the game. After celebrating with a swing on the rim, he landed in a split. The senior immediately grabbed his right hip in obvious pain and was assisted off the court on a stretcher before being taken to a Milwaukee-area hospital for evaluation.

The severity of his injury has not yet been disclosed.

The Texas A&M transfer was playing in his 100th collegiate game and making his 41st career start on Saturday’s fourth game of the 2025-26 NCAA season. Before exiting, he put together a flawless performance with 13 points on a perfect 6-of-6 shooting.

Despite the incident, the team rallied to a 89-82 victory despite trailing by 7 points before Payne left. However, the fall certainly did shock everyone as the Fiserv Forum went silent.

“I was a little caught off guard. He’s our best player,” head coach Williams confessed in a post-game interview with WMUC Sports. “That’s well-received within our program. When I got back to the huddle, I didn’t talk about ball. We just prayed for him. Not their execution, but their response was great growth for our program.”

Payne’s absence will only further strain the team’s performance. Fortunately, the rest of the team showed up.

The 6-foot-3 junior guard, Isaiah Watts, contributed 18 points off the bench, including three three-pointers, while David Coit led the team with 19 points. Freshman Darius Adams added 16 points, and Elijah Sanders dominated the boards with a game-high 11 rebounds.

For Marquette, their star player, Chase Ross, lived up to the hype with a game-high 31 points on 10-of-19 shooting. However, the Golden Eagles were unable to contain Maryland’s balanced attack.

While the team now has another win to its name, the season is far from over. If they continue to face the absence of their key players, one lingering question remains: will he be out for the remainder of the season? With no official update yet, fans can only hope for positive news in the coming days.

What’s next for Pharrel Payne-led Maryland?

Averaging a team-high 20 points, 8 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks, Payne is leading the Terrapins currently. However, if he gets ruled out, Williams will need his team to make some quick adaptations.

For one, they might want to give Saunders some added floor time. He is currently averaging only 26 minutes. Given that the forward is averaging double-digit scores, he might get more plays designed around him.

Maryland’s rebounding is not something to boast about. The team, in general, doesn’t do well on the boards. With the team-leading Payne out, that aspect of their defense will only go down. In fact, despite Williams’ preferred style of playing being boxing out in the paint, the team has failed to do so.

“If you saw all the drills we did for rebounding, you’d think we’re putting on a coaching clinic,” Williams said, “but we’re not executing well at all.”

The difference was glaring in today’s game. The Terps had 35 rebounds as compared to the Golden Eagles’ 44. Moreover, on the offensive side of the board, their rebounds were just 4 in contrast to Marquette’s 20. Additionally, Payne’s name is taken down from an already injury-riddled Maryland roster, with Myles Rice and Solomon Washington sidelined.

With a 3-1 record so far this season, including their only loss against the Georgetown Hoyas, the Terrapins men will play their next game on November 19th, when they will face off against the Mount St. Mary’s Mountaineers.

But their true test will be in the upcoming games when they play with No. 19-ranked Gonzaga and the No. 6-ranked Michigan, and until an official update arrives on Pharrel Payne, Maryland has to move forward with a thin margin for error