No. 8-seed Maryland men’s basketball falls to No. 1-seed Alabama, 73-51

Jahvon Quinerly had the Maryland defense struggling to find answers all night long.

After a timeout, Mark Sears found the senior guard wide open and he splashed a three to re-establish Alabama’s 17-point lead with four minutes to go. And on the next possession, he sized up Donta Scott before pulling a deep three in his grill.

The ball once again swooshed through the basket and Quinerly turned around and smirked to the crowd as he knew Alabama was on its way to the Sweet 16. 

No. 1 seed-Alabama cruised past No. 8 seed-Maryland men’s basketball in the Round of 32, 73-51 Saturday night in Birmingham. 

“It sucks to lose, and I hate losing, but I’m proud of these guys,” coach Kevin Willard said. “I’m proud of the way people look at Maryland basketball right now. It’s because of these young men and the work that they have done.”

Quinerly was unstoppable in the second half, scoring 15 of his 22 points after the break. He knocked down four threes and added three steals in a defensive effort that continuously flustered the Terps. 

“Really proud of him [Quinerly], I look at him like as a big brother,” freshman forward Brandon Miller said. “Not even just about him scoring 20. I think it’s him sitting down on defense and getting stops that we need.”

After recording zero points in his last outing, Miller scored 19 points alongside seven rebounds. Sophomore center Charles Bediako also recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds, and chipped in two blocks and two steals as well.

Graduate student guard Jahmir Young and sophomore forward Julian Reese were the only Terps to get going offensively, but still only combined for 26 points. Reese fouled out late in the game, and by being in foul trouble, was unable to help the Terps in the rebounding department.

Instead, the number one rebounding team in the nation boasted a plus-12 advantage on the boards and recorded 16 second chance points. Alabama’s size outmatched the Terps and was a big difference throughout the night. 

The Terps got off to a hot start, making their first four shots from the field. Reese accounted for two of those shots, but in just three minutes picked up his second foul. 

“Early in the year I had the same issues on foul trouble,” Reese said. “Mindset I try to go into when I’m in the game is keep the same energy. Don’t lose any focus and don’t get down on myself and keep playing my game. And I feel like if I don’t shy away from contact or physicality I’ll be good.”

After the hot start, Maryland missed its next nine shots with Reese sidelined before Young relieved the drought by knocking down a jump shot at the nine-minute mark. 

A defensive battle was underway with one basket combined in seven-and-a half minutes. Each team was racing down the court with several steals on each end. Bediako finally tied the game at 12 with a dunk.

The dunk kickstarted Alabama’s offense, and Miller got in a rhythm. An 11-1 run ensued, giving the Crimson Tide some breathing room. Their defense also continued to fluster the Maryland offense as the Terps missed their last seven shots before graduate student guard Don Carey finally finished a tough layup in traffic. 

The defensive showcase led to a low scoring half, but Alabama headed to the locker room with a 28-23 lead. 

“They have a very simple game plan, which works,” Willard said. “They just funnel everything into the big guy and they take away the strong side and the kicks, and they do a great job of it. They use their length tremendously.”

After recording 15 threes in its last game, Alabama recorded just one make from deep in the first half courtesy of Quinerly. But less than two minutes into the second half, Miller connected on a three to put him in double figures. 

“I thought we got a lot of our threes in the second half off offensive rebounds, some transition opportunities, kind of broken plays,” coach Nate Oats said. “I told our guys, one for seven, that’s not how we play. We’d like to get 30-plus [three-pointers] up a game.”

Five minutes in, Miller was flying on both ends of the court. On the defensive end he recorded a chase down block on Young, pinning the ball against the backboard. He then ran the floor in transition where he knocked down a three-pointer to give Alabama a 10-point lead. 

With 13 minutes to play, Reese backed down his defender and finished a left-handed layup through contact. He converted the free throw and brought the Terps within single digits, but shortly after picked up his fourth foul and was forced to sit on the bench for some time.

With Reese in-and-out of the game and playing with foul trouble, the Crimson Tide had their way on the glass. Halfway through the second half, Alabama recorded 11 second chance points while Maryland had zero. 

Graduate student forward Noah Gurley scored a layup at the 8:45 mark, giving Alabama a 17-point lead and an 8-0 run. Alabama’s length consistently gave Maryland’s defense issues around the rim.

Young and Reese did all they could to get Maryland back into the game but Alabama’s defense stood tall down the stretch. The Crimson Tide advanced, while the Terps season ended.

“They just got the best of us tonight,” Young said. “I feel like we fought hard. I feel like the score doesn’t really reflect on how hard we played tonight. I wouldn’t want to go to war with anybody else. I’m just proud of the guys and, you know, I love them.”