Instant reactions: Maryland finds shot in 2nd half, tops Brown in final non-conference game

Maryland welcomed the Brown Bears to College Park tonight in their last non-conference game of the season. The Terps came into this game with two straight wins, most previously against Lehigh on Tuesday where they dominated the second half. Brown, on the other hand, came into this game looking to rebound off a thirty-one-point blowout loss at Syracuse. Maryland began the game with their normal starting five, including Fatts Russell who left the last game with a knee injury.

First half slumps, Brown takes control

Much like the game against Lehigh, Maryland went straight to the paint on their first two possessions, producing baskets from both Donta Scott and Qudus Wahab. Brown did much of the same, forcing the ball inside and drawing Wahab into two early fouls. Trailing by two, freshman Julian Reese replaced Wahab and immediately saw the ball on their next trip down the floor. The Terps entered the first break tied at six, but it would be soon after when Maryland displayed some good habits that helped them play their best and turning defense into offense. Reese came up with a big block out of the timeout that turned into an and-one opportunity for Eric Ayala on the offensive end. But the Terps’ shot selection was inconsistent as prior to the under-12 media timeout, both Ayala and Scott took contested three-pointers to no avail. On their last possession before the break, though, Hakim Hart broke down a double team, slashing to the rim for a clean contested lay-in made possible by a crisp pass from Scott.

On the other end, Brown’s Tamenang Choh forced an and-1 to take the lead, 12-10. While Maryland did a nice job of drawing fouls early, 11 first-half turnovers gave Brown’s offense too many opportunities to retain control of the game. The Bears were in a groove on both ends, shooting 50% from the floor including 12-of-19 inside the three-point line. Both teams entered the bonus less than halfway through the half, something that slightly favored the Terps, as they shoot about three percent better than the Browns on the season. With 8:40 left in the half, another Russell turnover led to an alley-oop dunk by Browns Jaylan Gainey.

Gainey, once again, converted an uncontested dunk, followed by an uncontested floater by freshman guard Kino Lilly. Down four, Donta Scott drove into the lane and slams it home, but on the next possession threw up a three very early in the shot clock. The offense looked much better when the Terps were physical and getting to the rack, as you could see from those two possessions alone. Down two with four minutes remaining in the half, Brown brought out the press, which forced a Maryland offensive foul, and led to a Brown basket at the other end. An unconventional line-up that included Simon Wright, Ian Martinez, and Xavier Green was torn up on defense as Choh and Mitchell continued to have their way, shooting 50% in the first half as a team. Six late points from Russell brought Maryland back within four at the end of the first half, but the Terps were outworked all half by the Bears.

Maryland played a sloppy brand of basketball early, lacking any consistency on offense due to limited movement off the ball, a lack of ball movement, and a pesky Brown defense. Foul trouble kept Maryland in the game early on as Manning has routinely referenced, with fifteen of their thirty-five points coming from the charity stripe. Maryland shot 40% from the field compared to Browns 50% and went 0-for-5 from three-point land in the half. For Brown, Choh was especially impressive in the first half of this game. He did a nice job of getting to the rim as well as shooting from beyond the arc. His 18 points lead all scorers in the first half.

Terps’ second-half offense finds their groove, hitting open jumpers

Maryland went right to Scott to open the second half, who got the scoring underway with a nice post-up lay-in. On the next possession, Fatts got to the line and made both attempts. In the first four minutes of the half, Brown committed to doubling Wahab down low and crowding the paint. Offensively, Choh kept his hot hand for the Bears making a corner three, which was responded with two Russell layups and a Scott three-pointer, giving the Terps a one-point lead at the first break of the half.

A nice steal and score out of the timeout by Hart followed by a Russel turn-around hesi from the foul line gave Maryland their biggest lead of the game thus far at 50-45. Through the first minutes of the half, Maryland has out-hustled and out-rebounded the Bears which was something they failed to do in the opening half. This effort led to another Maryland basket, this time from Ayala, and extending the Terps’ run to 13-0 as the momentum gradually shifted towards the home team. Scott, who tried to throw an emphatic slam, found himself in some pain after Brown converted their first basket in nearly five minutes. As the Terps continued to pour it on, the Hart and Russell show was on full display. Showing no signs of lingering pain, Russell first knocked down an NBA-range three-pointer followed by two Hart baskets assisted by Fatts, one being an alley-oop and the other an uncontested three. The duo’s quick spark gave Maryland a nine-point lead with just under ten minutes remaining in the game and a win becoming more apparent.

But the foul trouble once again played a role in the second half after Reese picked up his fourth foul of the game, shortly sending him to the bench. In his first possession back in the game, Wahab converted a second chance opportunity, before giving up a second chance look on the next possession. Four baskets in a forty-five-second stretch gave Maryland a thirteen-point lead with just under six minutes left in the half. A lapse on defense gives way for Brown to find their way back in the game, allowing two easy scores which forced Danny Manning to call his second timeout of the half.

Ayala notched his second twenty-point game in a row with a turn-around mid-range jump shot coming out of the timeout. After another strong defensive possession, Ayala found himself with the ball again, this time converting two from the free-throw line. The finishing touches of the game came from an easy Russell lay-in and a steal from Ayala that turned into a Hart dunk to put Maryland up fourteen. Maryland was much more active throughout the half, picking up three straight offensive rebounds at one point in the half, moving the ball more, and being aggressive on defense. While they did not convert every time, that is the effort the Terps need for forty minutes each time out. The Terps defeated Brown 81-67, backed by yet another strong second half from the starters.

Next: Maryland will play at Iowa on Monday, January 2 for a 9 PM tipoff.

Top Performers:

Eric Ayala: 22 points, 8 rebounds, 2 steals

Hakim Hart: 17 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals

Fatts Russell: 18 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds

Donta Scott: 15 points, 8 rebounds