Maryland men’s basketball begins conference play with dominant 83-59 win over Ohio State

Photo courtesy of Maryland Athletics

It’s been a rough week for Ohio State University. 

On November 30, their football program was defeated by their bitter rival Michigan for the fourth straight year. Jump to just four days later, and their basketball program gets blown out in another important conference game. 

In the annual white-out game at Xfinity Center, the Maryland Terrapins (8-1, 1-0 Big Ten) gave their boisterous home crowd a night to remember, destroying the Buckeyes (5-3, 0-1), 83-59.

“When our student section is the way it was tonight, and has the energy that it had, this building has a different vibe,” said head coach Kevin Willard. “This building is special when it’s rocking.”

Ja’Kobi Gillespie got the crowd going early, sinking a three-pointer in front of the wall of students just 18 seconds into the game, giving the Terps a 3-0 lead – a lead that lasted all 40 minutes of the game. 

The Terps’ offense was impressive, shooting 55.9% from the floor in the first half. They were consistently finding open shots and their ball movement was fluid. 

They also provided the crowd with some highlight reel plays, leading to deafening noise in the arena. Most notably, a Gillespie three-pointer where he snatched Evan Mahaffey’s ankles, sending him to the floor. Gillespie stepped back, sunk the three, then gave a quick stare down to the Ohio State bench. 

“I wasn’t about to shoot it at first,” said Gillespie with a smile. “But then I saw that he had fallen, so I was like, I’ve got to shoot it. And I knocked it down.”

However, it was the defense that put on a clinic. In the first 20 minutes, the Terps forced 12 turnovers, allowed no points off second chances or their own turnovers, and held the Buckeyes to just 28.6% shooting, including 0-for-7 from three. 

“We had our best practice that we’ve had all year yesterday,” said Willard. “I gave them a day off after Alcorn, knowing that we’d only have one day to prepare. But they responded. They came back with what you saw in the first half today.”

The Buckeyes came into the matchup ranked third nationally beyond the arc, having made 10 or more from long range in each of the four games before. Tonight, they didn’t sink one until 13 minutes remained in the game. 

“That was a big emphasis on the scouting report,” said Gillespie. “They had four players shooting 40% from three, so we just wanted to make them dribble and play make.”

The Terps entered halftime up 50-17, the largest halftime lead in a Big Ten game since the 1996-1997 season. It was also their fourth time in just nine games scoring 50 or more points in the first half. The 17 given up is the second lowest they’ve allowed in a half, only three more points scored than the winless Canisius. 

The second half was not as strong for the Terps but they remained firmly in control. Their smallest lead in the entire final 20 minutes was by 22 points. 

Four of the Terps’ starting five finished the game with double-digit points, with Rodney Rice just one point shy. Gillespie finished as the Terps’ leading scorer with 23 points, also adding four assists, a rebound, and a steal. Derik Queen continues to make a case for best freshman in the country, earning his third double-double of the young season with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Tafara Gapare offered another good showing off the bench, notching 12 of Maryland’s 14 bench points.

“We just had to come out and make a statement,” said Gapare. “Tell people who we are and what we’re doing this season.”

The Terps couldn’t have started conference play any better. However, a long road remains ahead of them. Their journey continues on Sunday when they travel to take on No. 8 Purdue (7-1) in West Lafayette.