Maryland men’s basketball secures consecutive conference road wins for the first time in Kevin Willard era

Photo courtesy of Illinois Fighting Illini

Up by one with three seconds remaining, Maryland men’s basketball sought to protect its lead and claim back-to-back conference road wins for the first time in head coach Kevin Willard’s coaching tenure at Maryland. Indiana quickly got the ball to sophomore guard Myles Rice, who had 14 of his 16 points in the second half.

But the Terrapins’ defense was up to the task, trapping Rice in the left corner, forcing him to hoist a contested 3-point shot. The ball clanked off the front of the rim and kicked out toward the middle of the court, where senior guard Selton Miguel grabbed the rebound. He heaved the ball upward as time expired, sending the Terps into a jumping frenzy across the Hoosier State logo at midcourt.

Maryland (16-5, 6-4 Big Ten) had lost six of the previous seven against Indiana (14-7, 5-5 Big Ten) but secured a victory at Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Ind. Sunday, 79-78.

Junior guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie was again instrumental, finishing with 18 points, nine assists and three rebounds. Guard play was the Terps’ biggest asset, as sophomore guard Rodney Rice and Miguel carried most of the offense in the second half.

Rice eclipsed 20 points for the third time this season, while Miguel had 15. The trio of guards was wholly responsible for Maryland’s three-point baskets, with at least three each in a team 12-for-24.

“Those guys were feeling it; they wanted to be in there,” Willard said of his guards. “Just proud of the fact that they were so confident in each other.”

Senior forward Julian Reese had a nice follow-up to his career-best 27 and 17 Thursday at Illinois. He logged 14 points and 10 boards for his ninth double-double of the season.

The game started hot, with both high-tempo offenses trading buckets early in the shot clock. Indiana senior center Oumar Ballo feasted in the paint, with the Hoosiers holding a 16-4 points-in-the-paint lead at one point.

Maryland adjusted defensively, collapsing inside and forcing Indiana to make their jumpshots. The change frustrated the Hoosiers, giving the Terrapins the go-ahead and a lead that lasted for most of the game.

The pace slowly settled down throughout the half, and the Terps took a 38-37 lead into the locker room with three starters in double figures.

Indiana looked outmatched to start the second half, missing their first six field goal attempts and allowing Maryland forwards to score easy baskets in the paint. The Terps had several offensive outbursts, including a sudden onslaught from Miguel that included an 8-0 personal run.

Despite several moments where it seemed the Terrapins were on the brink of breaking the game open, the Hoosiers resisted and eventually brought the game even at 70 with 4:42 remaining.

Several Indiana scorers seemed to be in takeover mode at different times. Sophomore forward Mackenzie Mgbako had the hot hand midway through the half before passing it along to Myles Rice.

“Give Indiana a lot of credit. [Rice] looked like Steph Curry,” Willard said.

An anxious Assembly Hall crowd finally erupted after a brutal sequence for the Terps that saw a bad turnover lead to a Hoosiers transition layup plus a foul, giving Indiana their first lead since 11:18 left in the first half.

Indiana seemed to seize all the momentum it needed to close out a win, but a missed free throw gave Maryland the ball down 78-76 with the shot clock turned off.

Coming out of Willard’s timeout, the play looked broken from the start. But Rodney Rice found enough daylight coming around a screen to launch from three, knocking down what turned out to be the winning basket with seven seconds left.

“Everyone made big plays. Just a great road win,” Willard said

With the win, the Terrapins break a five-way tie for fifth in the Big Ten standings, which included Indiana.

Maryland will return to the XFINITY Center for a Wednesday night matchup with No. 18 Wisconsin (15-4, 5-3 Big Ten).