Maryland senior forward Dez Wells is set to return against Oakland on Saturday night after missing the past month with a fractured right wrist.

Wells likely won’t start in Maryland’s final non-conference game against the Grizzlies (4-9), Maryland Coach Mark Turgeon said Friday, but his return is a significant development for the 15th-ranked Terrapins (11-1). He was averaging 16.2 points per game and 4.8 rebounds in his first five games before the injury in a win over Iowa State cost him seven games. Wells returned to practice earlier this week and he said he was “confident” in how the wrist felt on Friday.

“It feels good to be out here with my teammates again,” Wells said. “I felt it prepared me to return and be able to assist my teammates.”

Maryland has gone 6-1 in Wells’s absence and has its highest ranking since 2006, but it has missed Wells’s energy and versatility. Turgeon said earlier this month that the team was targeting a return date for Wells shortly after Christmas, and Saturday’s night game against Oakland will afford Wells a chance to rebuild his game conditioning ahead of Tuesday’s Big Ten opener against Michigan State in East Lansing.

It was just three weeks ago that Wells had his cast removed, and Turgeon indicated that the staff would remain cautious about his return. But Turgeon said he had little concern about Wells’s physical condition, adding that Wells will need to get his timing back after sitting for nearly five weeks.

“He’s in pretty good shape. He was able to run, so I think that’s going to come pretty quickly,” Turgeon said. “Obviously, Dez is going to help defensively, he’s going to help us rebounding, he’s going to help us with toughness. Our break is better with him. There’s a lot of things that are better with Dez on the court.”