Maryland basketball upsets Minnesota’s 17th place



[ad_1]

With around six minutes to go against the Minnesota No.17, Donta Scott found compatriot Jairus Hamilton wide open on the right side beyond the arc and tossed the ball in his direction.

Without hesitation, Hamilton easily gutted the treble, extending Maryland’s men’s basketball lead to 14, the smell of upheaval floating in the air continuing to grow stronger with the passing minutes.

Already in the bonus, the Terrapins came the rest of the way from there to claim a resounding 63-49 victory over the Golden Gophers in Minneapolis on Saturday afternoon.

Maryland managed to stun another ranked opponent, with victory over Minnesota marking the team’s third loss to a Top 25 AP team on the road this season – the first time a team has ever been in program history. did.

“We’re all dogs, man. A team full of dogs and we built for it, ”said Darryl Morsell after the win. “We love coming to other arenas and leaving our mark. So that’s big. We have a lot more to accomplish as a team and we can certainly improve.

The Terps’ defense led them to historic victory, never skipping a beat. Minnesota made just 14 of its 46 field goal attempts in the contest, shooting 30.4% from ground and 21.7% (5 for 23) from deep. Saturday marked the first time in three years that the Golden Gophers have had under 50 points at home.

Entering the contest, Minnesota head coach Rick Pitino told media he didn’t know which Maryland team he expected to show up at The Barn. The Terps have had a season of ups and downs and entered Saturday’s contest with just two conference wins.

But from the first seconds of the game, it was clear that Maryland had a different kind of energy, very similar to the one that boasted of upset against Wisconsin and Illinois.

“In situations where we know we need a win, it’s a little different sense of urgency with the guys and everything,” said Eric Ayala.

The Terps got off to a 5-0 start thanks to a fierce defense that forced the Golden Gophers to miss their first four shots from the ground, as well as a triple from Donta Scott and a layup from Eric Ayala. Three minutes later, Liam Robbins pitched the home side with a layup to make it a 5-2 game, but Minnesota’s attack was cut short from there, unable to score another bucket for more than three minutes.

Meanwhile, Maryland was firing on all cylinders.

With just over 13 minutes to go, Galin Smith turned on his defender and landed a smooth hook shot on a pass from Aaron Wiggins. Eric Ayala hit a triple shortly after to continue the Terps’ shocking start, with a 17-3 lead.

Last time against No.7 Michigan, it was the Terps on the other side of an early 17-3 deficit. But the Terps were determined not to get screwed on Saturday against another great opponent.

On the Under-12’s timeout, an attack from Maryland that came out clean and crisp began to lose its edge. The Terps returned the ball five times in under five minutes, allowing Minnesota to find their rhythm and make it a seven-point game with less than eight minutes to go.

In a few seconds that passed at lightning speed, Marcus Carr dribbled easily through the paint in front of Donta Scott and cut to his left to avoid Jairus Hamilton. Aaron Wiggins came in for some help from the defense, but it was not helpful as Carr used the layup to cap a 9-0 run in Minnesota in 2:58.

Turgeon immediately called a time out and his team responded quickly, eager not to let a strong start, which has been a rarity for Maryland in the Big Ten this season.

The Terps responded immediately after the timeout, with Wiggins catching his defender looking at the ball with a backdoor cut that led to an easy two-handed slam. Ayala quickly started stepping into the paint himself, scoring at the rim on back-to-back possessions, including one in which he froze Minnesota forward Brandon Johnson and headed for the goal for an easy dunk, relocating Maryland, 26-17.

The Terps defense then forced a shot clock violation in the next game, further boosting their lead, which they held out of Minnesota’s reach for the remainder of the period.

“We try to be proud of our defense,” Morsell said. “We understand that with this team this year things are going to be very different so we are focusing on low scoring saves and close games.”

Hakim Hart suffered a foul throwing a three-point shot in the closing seconds of half-time and was able to give Maryland a significant boost before the break by making all three tries on the line. The Terps didn’t lag once in the opening period, coming out of the first period with a 36-27 lead.

At the start of the second, Robbins committed three fouls in two minutes, forcing him off the bench with four fouls. The seven-footer pullout should have been a big boost for the Terps, but instead both teams stayed cold.

Maryland only made one basket in about six minutes of play after Robbins left, but their defense continued to hold back. Still, the gap was narrowing with the Terps up just 41-35 with just under 13 minutes to go.

Eric Ayala dribbled to the top right of the arc, looking to land a shot before being stopped by Jamal Mashburn Jr. of Minnesota between the paint and the line. Mashburn almost turned the ball away, but Ayala managed to pass the ball to Darryl Morsell outside the three-point line. The senior guard burst inside and landed a tough shot on another Golden Gopher defenseman to extend Maryland’s lead to eight.

The Terps made their next two buckets, slowly continuing to increase their lead over the next few minutes. And after Hamilton’s bucket, all that was left was the defense to do its job in the home stretch.

Maryland continued to roll on their teeming defense the rest of the time, with Minnesota making just one of their last 10 shots to end the fight, scoring their first home loss this season.

“Minnesota are a great team, especially in this building. So for us to come here and keep them at 49, shows you the guys were really locked up defensively today, ”Turgeon said.

Three things to know

1. Maryland is making history. For the first time in program history, Maryland beat three Top 25 AP opponents on the road in the same season. The Terps upset then-No. 6 Wisconsin, 70-64, Dec. 28, followed by a stunning 66-63 win over then-No. 12 Illinois Jan. 10. Now Maryland topped it off by handing the Golden Gophers their first loss at The Barn in 2020-21.

2. Eric Ayala looked like him. After missing two games while treating a groin injury, Ayala has had its ups and downs in a loss to Michigan, clearly not in her normal pace. It was clear he was back in shape from the opening board of The Barn, which was critical to Maryland’s success. The guard had an exceptional first half, scoring 14 points on a 6-7 shot from the ground. He finished with 21 points, four rebounds and three steals.

3. The Terps won the rebounding battle. As an undersized squad taking on one of the best rebounding teams in the conference, winning the battle on the boards seemed like a daunting task for the Terps on Saturday afternoon. But Maryland did just that, holding a Minnesota team that thrives on the offensive glass to just seven offensive rebounds and 30 total rebounds. The Terps finished with 38 rebounds themselves, with Scott leading the effort with 11 on his own.

[ad_2]

Source link