After a heart-stopping 76-75 victory over Villanova on Sunday, Maryland men’s basketball challenged itself with a Wednesday matinee against mid-major Bucknell of the Patriot League.

The pairing — which resulted in a 91-67 demolition — might have seemed unworthy for a program that will open Big Ten play against visiting Ohio State on Wednesday.

But Terps coach Kevin Willard pointed out that finding an opponent for a game the day before Thanksgiving isn’t easy or simple.

He also disclosed an ulterior motive for scheduling Bucknell (4-4).

“They play a lot like Iowa,” he said of the conference rival Maryland (6-1) will meet on Feb. 16 at home. “They pop the ball, they have bigs that can shoot it, they play with good tempo, they play a lot of zone. So a lot of the scheduling, we have to balance the dates out with the women, we have to balance the dates out with finals, you have to find guys that can actually play. But at the same time, this is a good Bucknell team. When I watched them on film earlier in the year, I was like, ‘Woof.’ When they get their point guard [senior Elvin Edmonds IV] back [from an unspecified injury], they’re going to be really good.”

Here are three observations from Wednesday’s win:

The Tafara Gapare who erupted was the version Maryland had been waiting for: The hamstring injury that has sidelined fifth-year senior small forward Jordan Geronimo hasn’t been an issue — particularly against the Bison.That’s because Gapare filled the void with his best performance as a Terp, coming off the bench to lead the team with 19 points (12 in the second half) on 7 of 9 shooting, including 3 of 4 behind the 3-point line, and grab six rebounds. The junior power forward, who was one point away from his career high, smiled when asked what led to his explosive outing.

“I think my teammates can probably speak to this too. [I’ve been] trying to find myself in practice and find what I do best,” he said. “Just keep doing the same thing every day. For me, it’s a consistency thing.”

Gapare’s display was stunning considering he had scored 16 points total in his first six games as a member of the second unit. The 6-foot-9, 215-pound Georgia Tech transfer is capable of more, Willard said.

“I think for me, it’s getting used to putting him out there with the right guys to help him be successful,” he said. “He’s one of the more frustrating players I’ve ever coached, and it’s more of a compliment than it’s not because it’s kind of what I see in practice a lot. I’ve got to give him a little bit more time to probably be out there and make a difference. But he also has to understand that he’s got to come in and just do what he did tonight. He was aggressive from the start, came in looking to shoot, and he played really well.”

Maryland has the green light to shoot — perhaps from anywhere: Defense will always be a calling card for the Terps. They are also demonstrating a lack of shyness when it comes to shooting from the perimeter.

Maryland launched 31 shots from behind the 3-point line against Bucknell, making a season-best 12. The 31 tries matched a season high recorded in a 108-37 rout of Canisius earlier this month.

Through seven games, the Terps rank sixth in the Big Ten in 3-point attempts per game at 25. That’s an increase from the 21.1 long-range shots last year’s squad fired.

Maryland’s 32.0% efficiency rate behind the 3-point line ranks 12th in the 18-team conference and leaves much to be desired. But Willard said he has no plans to rein in the players’ preferences.

“We jack them up,” he said. “We’re not afraid to put them up, which is OK. Going through last year, I sat down with an analytical guy, and pretty much he said, ‘You’re better off jacking up a 3 than a turnover.’ Turnovers in college, they’re killers. So you’re better off shooting the basketball. A quick 3 is so much better than a great possession and then turning the basketball over. For us, it’s at times just getting shots up. You’re going to offensive-rebound it the way we have shooters. So if you’re playing that way, you’re not going to turn the ball over as much.”

The defense is turning turnovers into productive offense: The Terps are tied with Rutgers for the fewest turnovers (9.1 per game) in the Big Ten. But causing turnovers and converting them into points has become a sound strategy.

Maryland ranks fifth in the league in forced turnovers per game at 17.1 and is averaging 22.4 points off those miscues. It turned Bucknell’s 20 turnovers into 22 points, which ranks as the fourth-highest total this season.

Much of the Terps’ ability to create turnovers can be traced to the improvement in their offensive efficiency. By scoring on 48.9% of its shots instead of the 41.3% that last year’s squad finished with, they can set up their press more often and turn up the heat on opponents.

“That’s the one thing that I think we’ve done a much better job at this year than even the last two years,” Willard said. “We’re forcing a lot of turnovers, but we’re also capitalizing on the turnovers, which we are able to continue to press on multiple possessions. Last year, we pressed one out of every five possessions. Now we’re getting four possessions in a row, and that’s going to wear you down.”

Have a news tip? Contact Edward Lee at eklee@ baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/EdwardLeeSun.