Maryland men’s basketball collapses in second half, has Senior Day spoiled by Indiana, 83-78

Everything seemed to be going right for Maryland men’s basketball in its final home game of the season.

The Terps held a 16-point lead early in the second half, largely behind the four seniors it honored on Sunday. Jahmir Young, Donta Scott, Jahari Long and Jordan Geronimo were all productive.

But the game was completely flipped. Indiana outscored Maryland 48-27 over the final 17:27 and spoiled Maryland’s Senior Day, defeating the Terps, 83-78, in College Park on Sunday.

“When we play good offensively, we struggle defensively. When we play good defensively, we struggle offensively,” coach Kevin Willard said. “We’ve never been able to put both ends together.”

The loss was nothing short of a collapse by a Maryland (15-15, 7-12 Big Ten) team that had hung its hats on defense all season. Indiana (16-13, 8-10 Big Ten) shot a staggering 73.1 percent from the field in the second half, which included a run of 12 consecutive made baskets. The Hoosiers’ 50 second-half points were the most the Terps have allowed in a half all season.

Five-star freshman Mackenzie Mgbako led Indiana’s offensive explosion, scoring 18 of his career high 24 points after halftime. 

After Julian Reese poured in 11 first-half points while holding Indiana 7-footer Kel’el Ware scoreless, that matchup reversed in the latter frame. Reese was held to just two points in the second half and Ware found a rhythm down the stretch with nine second-half points on 4-4 shooting.

“Early on, we were able to get to the rim,” Young said. “So I feel like they told [Ware] to just try to contest shots, try to just be big in there and use his length … it definitely disrupted us in the second half.”

Maryland’s second half struggles were evident on both ends of the floor. The first half was one of the Terps’ best on the offensive end all season — they shot 52 percent from the field and three players reached double figures as part of a 43-33 halftime lead.

But the stagnant, sloppy offense that has been customary for Maryland all season returned in the second half. The Terps committed seven turnovers and shot just 44.8 percent from the field in the final 20 minutes — they made their last five looks, only to trim their eventual final deficit.

“Some of our turnovers obviously led down to them getting some easy buckets,” Willard said. “… They really started loading up the paint a little bit, making it a little bit more difficult.”

The Xfinity Center crowd was as loud as it had been all season after Young converted an and-one to give Maryland a 51-35 lead with 17:51 remaining. But the energy in College Park slowly drained over the remainder of the game as the Hoosiers went on a seemingly never-ending run.

The energy on the court looked just as lifeless down the stretch. Maryland went over seven minutes without a field goal late in the second half — a stretch that saw Indiana increase its lead as high as 11.

The Terps looked to be out of the game when a Trey Galloway jumper put the Hoosiers up 77-66 with over three minutes remaining. But Maryland got a couple quick stops and scores, and Young’s first and only triple of the game trimmed the deficit to five with 1:56 remaining.

With a chance to make it a one-possession game, a turnover on an inbounds play with 1:11 to go represented the nail in the coffin, as Indiana was able to salt away Maryland’s slim hopes at the free-throw line.

Young delivered a performance nearly on par with his season averages in his final home game, posting 22 points on 8-of-18 shooting to go with five rebounds and four assists. Young had help offensively, which hasn’t been the case often this season. Three other Terps scored in double figures, and Long’s 12 points represented the second-highest mark of his career.

“You don’t want to go out the way [the seniors] have gone out,” Willard said.

That level of offensive production has typically been enough for Maryland to win behind its defense that ranked fifth in KenPom efficiency before Sunday. But the Terps found another new way to lose in what’s been a disappointing second season under Willard.

Maryland finished the season 4-6 at home in conference play, a year after it went undefeated against Big Ten teams at Xfinity Center.

“We’ve struggled at home this year,” Willard said. “It’s probably been the most frustrating thing … They seem much more relaxed on the road than they do at home. I can’t really put my finger on it.”

The Terps are guaranteed to finish in the bottom four of the Big Ten standings with Sunday’s loss, which means they won’t get a bye in the Big Ten Tournament — which Maryland will need to win to get back to the NCAA Tournament.