Despite everything that has transpired with the Maryland men’s basketball team this season, the Terps have largely battled under interim coach Danny Manning. That much was evident last month when the Terps clawed back from a 21-point deficit before losing to Wisconsin by one. On Tuesday, Maryland trailed by 15 before falling to Michigan State by two.
On Sunday afternoon against No. 16 Ohio State, there was no inspiring comeback, however, as the Terps never found a rhythm offensively in their 82-67 loss to the Buckeyes at the Value City Arena in Columbia, Ohio. With their 12th loss, Maryland, a preseason AP Top 25 team with hopes of some postseason glory, fell below .500 for the first time this season.
The last time the Terps (11-12, 3-9 Big Ten Conference) had a losing record this late in the season was March 12, 1993, the final game of former coach Gary Williams’ fourth season in which they finished 12-16 and 2-14 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Those Terps started 10-5 but lost seven straight and fell to 10-11 on Feb. 13, 1993, and never had a winning record the rest of the way. Maryland made the NCAA tournament 11 consecutive seasons after that.
Maryland trailed by double digits for the majority of the game against Ohio State (14-5, 7-3 Big Ten). Even when the Terps trimmed a 21-point deficit to 12 midway through the second half, the Buckeyes had an answer. They shot 30-for-59 (42%) from the floor.
“[Ohio State] gets very comfortable,” Manning said. “They shot too high of a percentage in the first half, and they played really well at home. We have to be a lot more disruptive to their offensive flow.”
Buckeyes junior E.J. Liddell continued to make his case for the Big Ten Conference Player of the Year, finishing with 24 points, 11 rebounds and five assists. Liddell’s offensive versatility was unmatched in the second half, where he had 13 points while knocking down a pair of 3-pointers.
Junior forward Donta Scott was the source of Maryland’s offensive production, as he amassed a career-high 25 points on 8-for-13 shooting. Graduate transfer guard Fatts Russell added 12 points, six rebounds and five assists. Outside of Scott and Russell, the Terps didn’t get much offensive help from the rest of their roster. Senior guard Eric Ayala and junior Hakim Hart, Maryland’s most consistent players this season, combined for 14 points and made just four of 16 shots.
Manning said Ohio State did a good job of using multiple defenders to disrupt Ayala’s rhythm, calling the senior guard’s performance “a rough shooting night from the perimeter.” This was the second time in three games where Ayala was held under 10 points.
Scott said after the game that he expected the Buckeyes to lock in on Ayala, making sure he didn’t get going.
The Terps finished the game 23-for-59 (39%) from the floor and went 10-for-29 (34.5%) from deep.
The Buckeyes created separation early. They went on an 8-0 run, which featured a pair of 3-pointers from freshman guard Malaki Branham, to take a 17-6 lead. Maryland, on the other hand, missed four consecutive shots after opening the game 3-for-6.
The Terps found a flow when Russell dashed towards the rim for a layup before Scott swished in a 3-pointer in transition, cutting their deficit to six points with 12:03 remaining in the first.
But Maryland’s momentum quickly came to a halt. The Terps watched shots constantly bounce off the rim, as they went 2-for-12 in a four-minute span. During that time frame, Ohio State extended its lead to 26-13.
“Offensively, we have to reward ourselves for the execution,” Manning said. “We had opportunities to score the basketball. We missed some looks from the perimeter, we missed some looks inside the paint, and we have to be able to cash those in.”
After trailing by as many as 14 points, junior guard Hakim Hart knocked down a long 3-pointer to cut the deficit to nine. However, Liddell made sure his team stayed in front, scoring eight consecutive points by attacking the rim.
He continued to wreak havoc, converting a pair of free throws after drawing a foul then his aggressive defense forced Scott to travel.
After Ayala’s shot attempt circled around the rim, Liddell dribbled down the court before finding a trailing Justin Ahrens, who knocked down a 3-pointer to build a 42-27 lead. Ohio State went 11-for-26 from the 3-point line.
“We knew [Ahrens] was a great shooter going in,” Manning said. “He got away from us and knocked down four [3-pointers].”
Offense continued to be hard to come by for the Terps. They went into intermission trailing by 13 while shooting 32.3% from the floor. Russell and Ayala combined to make just three shots on 13 attempts. Scott had 10 points in the first half, but most of his points were generated from the free-throw line, where he went 4-for-6.
The Buckeyes, who shot 61.5% in the first, took control of the game during the opening minutes of the second half. Despite Scott knocking down a pair of 3-pointers, the Buckeyes built a 20-point lead with 15 minutes to go.
Maryland’s best offensive stretch came when the game was basically out of reach. Scott drove to the rim before elevating for a two-handed dunk. Seconds later, Russell was speeding down the court before passing to Scott for a layup. It cut the deficit to 18.
“Donta gave us great energy,” Manning said. “We needed that type of energy level from other guys on our team.”
After Ohio State extended its lead to 65-44, Scott and Russell traded 3-point baskets to make it a 15-point game.
Key was flexing his muscles midway through the second half when he snagged an offensive rebound before scoring a contested layup to give Ohio State a 71-55 lead. The Buckeyes continued to play at a high rate offensively, shooting 42.4% from the floor in the second half.
When Scott’s one-handed dunk cut Ohio State’s lead to 12 points, Liddell knocked down a 3-pointer with 3:49 left to solidify a result that was never in doubt.
“The biggest thing is when you go on the road or anytime in general, you can’t let a team shoot 60% in a half,” Manning said. “That will put you in a pretty big hole, which it did for us.”
IOWA@MARYLAND
Thursday, 7 p.m.
