Maryland men’s basketball’s offense falters late in 63-54 loss to Michigan State

Maryland men’s basketball’s stingy defense kept it within striking distance for most of the night, but in what has become an all-too-familiar outcome for the Terps, they struggled to find any semblance of offense outside of Jahmir Young.

Maryland shot just 31 percent from the field and 23 percent from three-point range as the Terps (13-9, 5-6 Big Ten) fell to Michigan State (14-8, 6-5 Big Ten), 63-54 in East Lansing on Saturday.

Maryland was at a major disadvantage early when Julian Reese committed his second foul just over two minutes into the contest. Michigan State took advantage of Reese’s time on the bench, going on a 10-2 run over the next four minutes to force Kevin Willard to put his star big man back in the game.

The Spartans repeatedly worked the ball inside and got some easy looks at the rim due to Reese trying to avoid a third foul. Maryland closed the deficit to three with Reese on the floor before he picked up his third foul with over seven minutes left in the first half.

Without Reese, Maryland leaned heavily on Jahmir Young and Donta Scott, who combined to score 23 of the Terps’ 27 first-half points. Maryland shot just 31 percent from the field in the first 20 minutes.

Michigan State took a four-point lead into halftime, with Reese’s foul trouble a major driving force. Maryland was +5 in Reese’s nine first-half minutes, and -9 with him on the bench.

It took just eight seconds of the second half for Reese to pick up his fourth foul on an illegal screen. Foul troubles limited Reese to just 14 minutes and he was held without a made basket and just two points. The junior forward was never able to establish a rhythm, as he spent the majority of his sparse time on the court trying to avoid fouling.

The absence of Reese made its mark in the box score – Michigan State outrebounded Maryland, 36-30, and outscored the Terps in the paint, 30-18.

Maryland briefly took its first lead of the night with 7:16 remaining when Young beat his defender off the dribble and kissed a reverse layup off the glass, but Michigan State immediately responded with an alley-oop from AJ Hoggard to Mady Sissoko and the Terps never saw the lead again.

The Spartans went on a 14-2 run to stretch their lead to a baker’s dozen with three minutes remaining, putting to rest any hopes the Terps had of picking up another big road win.

Despite Young’s best efforts – the fifth-year guard poured in 31 points, including 19 in the second half, Maryland couldn’t find consistent production elsewhere with Reese stuck to the bench the majority of the game.

After a strong first half, Scott struggled in the second, shooting just 1-for-10 from the field and 0-for-6 from beyond the arc to go with four personal fouls. A pair of Jahari Long free throws represented Maryland’s only bench points.

The loss is Maryland’s sixth straight against Michigan State. The Terps return to College Park on Tuesday to host Rutgers as they look to get back to .500 in conference play.