After a combined 19 days since their last games — seven for Maryland men’s basketball and 12 for Maryland-Eastern Shore — both teams showed signs of rust.
But despite some uneven stretches, the Terps held firm on their home court. Returning to action after the holiday break, Maryland rode a dominant final 10 minutes to secure an 81-66 victory over the Hawks.
The Terps got off to a strong start, jumping out to a 7-2 lead in the first four minutes. Selton Miguel’s aggressive play and effective work in the paint fueled the early run. But not everything went smoothly. Derik Queen missed a pass to Julian Reese in the post, continuing a recent trend of bad turnovers.
Despite the misstep, Reese provided an offensive spark for the Terps. His soft touch around the rim and reliable floaters earned him seven early points and helped ignite a 9-0 run.
When Reese went to the bench with the Terps leading, 11-2, their offense struggled to maintain momentum. Maryland’s attack strayed away from 3-pointers early on, but its interior offense and defense faltered without Reese on the floor. Several pick-and-pop attempts involving Queen and Jordan Geronimo fell short, either due to off-target passes or missed shots.
Maryland endured a scoring drought that stretched nearly four and a half minutes before Ja’Kobi Gillespie ended it with two free throws. Even so, the Terps continued to struggle from beyond the arc, missing their first eight attempts before Rodney Rice finally connected from deep with just over six minutes remaining in the first half. They shot 5-of-18 (27.8%) from deep on the day.
Meanwhile, Maryland-Eastern Shore’s Ketron Shaw began to find his rhythm, hitting multiple midrange jumpers, some of them well-defended. Shaw sparked a strong offensive stretch for the Hawks, who made five of six shots during that span. Shaw finished the game with 20 points on 9-of-16 shooting.
As they’ve done in recent games, the Terps took control as the first half wound down. They clamped down defensively, forcing the Hawks into a scoring drought of more than two minutes, while Maryland capitalized with a 7-0 run. It hit six of its final eight shots to close the half on a high note.
DeShawn Harris-Smith punctuated Maryland’s strong finish, draining a 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded to give the Terps a commanding 40-24 lead at halftime.
Jordan Geronimo replaced Derik Queen in the lineup to start the second half and made an immediate impact, scoring four quick points before being subbed out for the freshman just a few minutes later.
Maryland-Eastern Shore refused to back down, though. While the Terps struggled, starting just 2-of-7 from the field in the second half, the Hawks caught fire, hitting six consecutive shots to trim the deficit to eight points.
Maryland’s offense sputtered early in the half, with three turnovers and no made 3-pointers in the first 10 minutes. In contrast, Maryland-Eastern Shore found success through a mix of scoring avenues, including free throws and two 3-pointers during that stretch.
Momentum shifted as Maryland picked up the pace. It went on a 6-0 run in 55 seconds, forcing turnovers and converting them into fast-break points. Maryland capitalized on these opportunities, finishing the game with 23 points off turnovers.
By the 7:50 mark, the Hawks had fallen behind by 13 points, struggling to keep up with Maryland’s renewed energy.
Queen was the force that finalized the victory for the Terps. He scored eight points in less than five minutes, helping to extend the lead to 20 points and making a final comeback attempt impossible to carry out. Queen finished the afternoon with 18 points and 14 rebounds.
Three things to know
1. Miguel slowed his torrid pace. Despite scoring in the opening minutes, Miguel cooled off after hitting a career-high six 3-pointers and scoring 24 points against Syracuse. On Saturday, he notched 10 on 4-of-13 shooting.
2. Reese led the Maryland scoring effort. While Reese has been quiet offensively at times this year, he took charge Saturday, pacing the Terps with a season-high 23 points. He scored 13 points in the first half and corralled 11 rebounds.
3. No more nonconference matchups. With the victory over Maryland-Eastern Shore, the Terps have officially completed their nonconference schedule. They will solely face Big Ten competition for the rest of the regular season, starting with Washington on Jan 2.
