Reese Dominates As Maryland Cruises Past Binghamton in 76-52 Win

The game was never in doubt as Maryland cruised to its third victory of the season, defeating Binghamton 76-52 inside the Xfinity Center.

After notching his first career double-double against Western Carolina, it was Julian Reese who led the team again with a team-high 19 points on 8-of-9 shooting while adding seven rebounds and a pair of blocks. Reese would be one of three players to finish in double-figures, joining Hakim Hart (13 pts) and Donta Scott (10). The trio would help the Terps start hot to set the tempo early.

Thanks to six Binghamton turnovers in the first four minutes, Maryland jumped out to an early 8-0 lead just two minutes into the game. A big reason for the early pressure was, once again, thanks to Maryland’s defense as the same starting five rotated between fullcourt and halfcourt presses to disrupt Binghamton’s flow. Binghamton would shoot just 26% from the floor

It took just five minutes for Maryland to grab its first double-digit of the night and never looked back, even after shooting just 3-of-11 from the field over a six-minute stretch halfway through the first half. With the defense looming large as Scott and Emilien both logged a block alongside Reese, the Terps were able to control the glass for the first time of the season with the Terps’ length proving too much for Binghamton. Maryland won the rebounding battle 42-38, including 26-12 in the first half, while dominating the paint and outscoring Binghamton 48-16. Still, the Terps flirted with a 20-point lead coming out of the under-eight timeout as Binghamton tried switching to a zone to slow down Maryland’s offense before Hakim Hart’s length broke it down in the paint.

It was the exact type of performance that fans wanted to see out of the Terps to kick off nonconference play. With the defense showing promising signs to start the year, Maryland has witnessed a more aggressive Julian Reese around the rim on both ends of the court. While Jahmir Young would finish with seven points in 21 minutes, the veteran point guard was aggressive and creative in the paint to find his offense early on. Ian Martinez, meanwhile, showed athleticism around the rim with a nifty reverse layup in the second half while Patrick Emilien showed promise as a paint scorer. Despite the Terps shooting well from the floor in Tuesday’s win, three-point shooting remains a concern after missing their first five shots of the game before Noah Batchelor found the bottom of the net on his first attempt. Still, Maryland shot just 2-of-12 through the first half and was 3-of-17 before Ike Cornish knocked down a triple with two minutes left, giving him nine points on 3-of-4 shooting in 12 minutes.

Still, it was the swarming defense and efficient two-point scoring that helped the Terps cruise into the second half, leading by as many as 32 points. Willard admitted last week that he feels comfortable with eleven guys and the big lead gave him a chance to give Noah Batchelor, Patrick Emilien then eventually Caelum Swanton-Roger extended playing time, but Batchelor appeared to tweak his ankle with roughly eight minutes to go and would head to the bench until the four-minute mark. The freshman forward would help Maryland close out the game with Ian Martinez, Jahari Long, Ike Cornish on the court while Arnaud Revaz checked in for the first time this season.

Next: Maryland will travel to Connecticut for the Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off where they will face Saint Louis at 1 PM on ESPNEWS.

Related Links

Shell-N-Tell: Stages of Grieving

Preview: Maryland returns to action on Tuesday night vs. Binghamton

SEC verbal visiting Maryland this weekend (+)

Terp commits in action: playoff edition

Men’s lacrosse inks top-20 recruiting class