The XFINITY Center crowd began to roar with just over a minute left in the first half against Coppin State, as Julian Reese exited the game right before the break.
Reese has quickly become a fan favorite amongst the Maryland faithful, and is usually cheered when he exits, but this time fans had even more of a reason to celebrate the 6-foot-9 big man from Baltimore.
In the first half alone, Reese notched a career-high in points, scoring 22 on a perfect 9-9 from the field and 4-7 from the charity strike. The sophomore forward became the first Maryland player since Anthony Cowan in 2019 to score more than 20 points in the first half. Reese also registered eight rebounds, two blocks and a steal in the half. The player whom coach Kevin Willard believes hasn’t even “scratched the surface” of his potential showed why his coach may be right.
Reese believes it’s his new found belief in himself that led him to show out in the first half.
“Bringing that intensity that some people, some people were not bringing it, and again just confidence really,” Reese said. “I feel like if I play like that, then we[‘re] unstoppable.”
Reese finished with 24 points and 10 rebounds for his second double-double of the season, a large reason why No. 23 Maryland men’s basketball continued its 6-0 start to Willard’s tenure, defeating Coppin State 95-79 on Black Friday.
Leading scorer Donta Scott did not have a great game, with just 9 points, but other Terps stepped up with the senior forward’s struggles.
Senior Hakim Hart did just about everything on the court — driving to the basket, playing defense, and shooting efficiently from deep. The guard finished with a season high 22 points and eight rebounds on the day, shooting 7-11 from the field. Graduate student guard Jahmir Young also hit double-digit points with 21, scoring 15 in the second half. It’s the first time since 2002 that three Terps have scored more than 20 points in a game.
“He’s very good in ball screens, he’s very good coming off a lot of dribble handoffs, he’s an excellent passer, and he’s worked really hard on his shot to become a consistent shooter,” Willard said in regards to Hart. “He’s one of those guys that when he’s on the floor he’s a little bit of a mismatch, and I have a lot of confidence in him.”
Coppin State didn’t make the win easy, as two key Eagles gave the Terps fits all throughout the game.
Redshirt senior guard Sam Sessoms was a big part of the Eagles’ offense, exploding for a game-high 28 points, and even gave Coppin State the lead early in the first half. Senior forward Justin Watson made an impact in the first half, scoring six of the Eagles’ first eight points in the paint. Watson finished with 14 points and seven rebounds.
Maryland’s activity on the offensive glass led to countless second-chance points. The Terps out-rebounded Coppin State on the offensive glass 18-9 which led to them outscoring Coppin State in second-chance points 26-9.
The Terps bossed up on the defensive end, forcing Coppin State to turn over the ball 16 times as the full court pressing worked at points that gave the Eagles’ guards a tough time getting up the court.
While the game had its twists and turns, a heated moment in the second half caused a lot of discussions amongst the referees.
Reese and Coppin State redshirt sophomore guard Isaiah Gross both fell to the ground in an attempt to get a rebound, and both proceeded to get up and jaw at each other as the Maryland bench almost cleared. Two assistant coaches on Willard’s staff were forced to leave the court after the bench was assessed a technical foul. Gross was assessed a technical foul and a personal foul, while Reese was assessed a technical.
Six total technical fouls were assessed throughout the game.
“I would gladly lose two assistants any time to make sure we don’t have a fight,” Willard said.
The intensity of the game was not a surprise, as there were a combined 45 fouls called. In both halves, Maryland got into the bonus with over 10 minutes to play, and even got into the double bonus with over 12 minutes to play in the second half.
Maryland has been efficient from three-point range this season, but Friday night wasn’t one of those nights. The Terps shot just 19% from three, compared to Coppin State’s excellent 47.4%. The poor shooting from deep allowed the Eagles to stick around, down 10-14 for most of the second and first half.
Coppin State coach and former Maryland men’s basketball national champion Juan Dixon’s Eagles fell to the Terps after being unable to hang around in the second half.
“It felt great coming back to Maryland, but it wasn’t about me today,” Dixon said. “It’s about a group of young men that understand that they’re playing for something bigger than one game.”
After improving to 6-0 on the season, Maryland will be back on the court on Tuesday to take on Louisville in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
