No. 20 Maryland men’s basketball earns wire-to-wire win, remain unbeaten all-time against USC

Photo courtesy of University of Maryland Athletics

It seemed like it might be over before it started in College Park Thursday night, where Maryland men’s basketball (21-6, 11-5 Big Ten) never trailed in an 88-71 win over USC (14-12, 6-9) in just the fourth meeting all-time between the schools.

The Terrapins opened the game on an 11-0 scoring run, fueling the crowd in the Trojans’ first-ever visit to Xfinity Center. Steals, threes, blocks and dunks – it was all working and the feeling throughout the room was that it might never stop.

But even with all the momentum, Maryland’s game suddenly became sloppy. The team quickly cooled off over a 1-for-7 stretch, at one point going two and a half minutes without scoring. USC’s resiliency kept them in the game while the Terps took their foot off the gas.

“It wasn’t a whole lot of panic,” head coach Kevin Willard said. “We had a turnover, they hit a three. We missed a layup, they hit a three. That’s going to happen sometimes.”

Freshman guard Wesley Yates III had his shooting touch throughout the half, bolstering a Trojan comeback to within three with 2:30 left. Yates finished with 21 points on 9-for-17 shooting from the field.

Luckily for Maryland, its defensive intensity never wavered and a small bit of momentum in the final minute gave them a 37-27 lead at halftime. The duo of fifth-year guard Jay Young and sophomore wing DeShawn Harris-Smith presented an especially suffocating challenge for USC, including a 10-second violation out of the under-4 media timeout.

Out of the half, the Terps regained their early-game firepower, opening up a 20-point lead less than four minutes in. Sophomore guard Rodney Rice came alive during the stretch, with USC seemingly without an answer on either side of the floor.

“All guys can go and create for themselves and others,” Rice said. “I like what’s going on right now.”

But, almost identical to the first period, Maryland’s imperfections suddenly arose when USC seemed primed for a kill shot. The Terps suffered four ugly turnovers in less than four minutes, aiding the Trojan’s effort to bring the game back to within ten.

Senior guard Clark Slajchert was a bright spot for USC, fending off the Maryland crowd’s personal jeers with three straight makes from beyond the arc after not seeing the floor in the first half.

Needing someone to captain the ship, the Terps turned to their steady point guard. Junior Ja’Kobi Gillespie eased the Terps back into a more comfortable double-digit lead, which in turn opened up more opportunities inside for freshman center Derik Queen to take advantage of.

“[Gillespie]’s finally getting comfortable with Big Ten play,” Willard said. “He’s comfortable in the offense now, and he’s much more confident going into games.”

The Terrapins commanded the final minutes of the game, getting their last starter (Miguel) into double figures with 1:04 left.

The recently-dubbed ‘Crab Five’ put in another solid showing, led by Rice’s 22 and Gillespie’s 20. Queen’s 13 and 17 gave him his fourth-straight double-double, while Reese secured his 10th rebound in the final minute to give him six double-doubles in the last eight.

“We do a good job sharing the ball, getting everybody involved,” Queen said. “We did a great job feeding off the energy.”

With the win, Maryland improves to 4-0 all-time against the Trojans and has now won eight of its last nine. 

The Terps will host 14th-ranked Michigan State (21-5, 12-3 Big Ten), whom they have lost six straight against, in a marquee showdown Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.