No. 2 seed Maryland men’s basketball crushes No. 7 seed Illinois 88-65 in Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinals

Photo courtesy of Maryland Athletics

On March 8, 2020, Maryland men’s basketball walked off the Xfinity Center court for the final time that season as the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten and the No. 12 team in the country. 

Entering postseason play, that Terps team not only had Big Ten Championship aspirations but National Championship aspirations. 

But they never had the chance to prove it. The coronavirus shut down the entire world just days later, bringing the season to an end.

Five years later, No. 11 Maryland (25-7, 14-6 Big Ten) entered the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis as the No. 2 seed and steamrolled the No. 7 seed, No. 24 Illinois (21-12, 12-8 Big Ten) 88-65 in the Terps’ first game as a top-four seed since that 2019/20 season. 

It was the Terps’ first game since playing Northwestern on March 8, and they have often struggled following long breaks this season. Five of their seven losses this season have come after not playing for at least three days. 

“Thanks for reminding me,” head coach Kevin Willard said after the Northwestern game. “I was going to go have a beer, now I’m gonna make it whiskey.”

None of those struggles were on display on Friday. Maryland got off to a roaring start, mostly due to the 3-point shooting of guard Rodney Rice. The junior shot 5-for-7 from three in the first half, scoring 18 points. He finished as the game’s leading scorer with 26 points. 

Rice, who was left off any Big Ten awards lists and teams, said he was playing with a chip on his shoulder. 

“I’m glad I’ve got the motivation now,” Rice said. “I’m just gonna continue to play and let my game do the talking.”

Although the Terps decimated the Illini 91-70 on Jan. 17, Friday’s game was set to look much different. Sophomore center Tomislav Ivisic, who was injured in the last matchup, was back to health. The Terps capitalized on his absence in January, scoring 64 points in the paint, the most of any Big Ten team in a game this season. 

But Ivisic’s presence made no difference as Maryland dominated in every aspect in the first frame on both ends of the court. 

In the first half, Illinois committed 11 turnovers, which led to 22 Maryland points. Meanwhile, Maryland committed zero turnovers. The Terps out-rebounded the Illini 24 to 22 and outscored them 15 to eight on second-chance points. 

When forward Julian Reese got into foul trouble at the end of the half, Maryland got something rare — scoring from its bench. 

Entering the game, none of Maryland’s bench players averaged more than four points per game. On Friday, forward Jordan Geronimo scored a season-high 11 points. The senior added five steals, five rebounds, and a block. 

“It was great to be able to contribute and to be able to help my team win,” said Geronimo. “I trust my teammates and they trusted me with the ball. I was able to put it in the rim.”

The Terps entered the locker room, leading 57-31. It was the second-most points the team scored in a first half this season. 

“Anytime you’re up by 26 at halftime, you must have done something right,” Willard said. “We didn’t really do anything at halftime. I just told them not to mess it up.”

In the second half, nothing changed. The Terps continued to play clean, finishing with just three turnovers and allowing them to maintain their big lead throughout the game.

The Terps will now wait to play the victor of the No. 3 seeded Michigan Wolverines and the No. 5 seeded Purdue Boilermakers. Tipoff will be at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday.