Feature photo courtesy of Maryland Athletics.
The No. 10 Maryland Terrapins never led at No. 20 Purdue.
On Saturday in West Lafayette, Ind., the Terps (23-6, 11-5 B1G) struggled to secure rebounds; suffering their third loss in the past four games as they fell to the Boilermakers (22-7, 10-6 B1G), 83-79.
Purdue outrebounded Maryland 41-22. On the offensive glass, they held a 19-9 lead. Purdue scored 24 second chance points, while Maryland only scored 10.
Seven minutes and 28 seconds into the game, the Terps trailed 24-8.
Out of a 30-second timeout, guard Rasheed Sulaimon turned the ball over. Purdue guard Johnny Hill stole the ball, ran down the court and converted a layup to give the Boilermakers a 16-point lead, their largest of the game.
The Terps would battle back into the game by halftime. In the final 10:17 of the first half, center Diamond Stone scored all ten of his first half points. At the break, the Terps trailed by five.
The second half followed somewhat of a similar script. With 4:13 remaining, Purdue earned another double-digit lead as center A.J. Hammons hit a three-pointer to put the Boilermakers up 74-64.
Following the under four media timeout, the Terps went on a 12-2 run. During the run, the Terps employed their full court press. Forward Jake Layman, point guard Melo Trimble and Sulaimon each earned a steal.
Guard Jared Nickens hit a triple from downtown to cap off a 7-0 run. Nickens finished the game with 10 points on three 3-pointers. It was only the fifth time he has made at least three shots from downtown this season.
After guard Rapheal Davis sunk a pair of free throws, Trimble responded with a three. Trimble, who has struggled recently, paced the Terps offensively with 19 points, making 9-10 free throws. Trimble still had difficulty shooting, converting four field goals on 12 shots. AJ Hammons led the Boilermakers with 19 points.
After Sulaimon made his second steal of the game, Layman broke through the paint and dunked the ball, helping the Terps tie the game at 76.
But the Terps couldn’t break through to lead in the final minutes, falling 83-79.
With the loss, the Terps currently sit alone at third place in the Big Ten. No. 6 Michigan State and Wisconsin sit half a game behind the Terps, while Purdue, Ohio State and Michigan are all one game behind.
The Terps next two games will play a crucial role in determining if they earn a top four seed and two byes in the Big Ten conference tournament.
Maryland will return home to face Illinois (12-16, 4-11 B1G) on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. ET. The game will be televised on ESPN/2.
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- Terps land three-star tight end Chigoziem Okonkwo - August 18, 2017
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