Michigan State basketball 20-9 (12-6 Big Ten) shot the ball efficiently to start each half and pulled down offensive rebounds to squander any attempts by the Maryland Terrapins 23-6 (13-5 Big Ten) to gain momentum.
Twenty-fourth ranked Michigan State basketball restored balance to the Big Ten by beating the ninth-ranked Maryland Terrapins on the road. The Terps are now 15-1 at home and there are no more undefeated home teams in the conference.
The Xfinity Center was alive and buzzing as ESPN College Gameday came to College Park for the highly anticipated Big Ten matchup.
A share of the Big Ten regular-season title and bragging rights were on the line for the Terps as they looked to sweep the Spartans at home.
Maryland Terrapins fans remember that it was Anthony Cowan Jr. who led the late-game comeback on Michigan State in the Breslin Center with three consecutive three-pointers and a pair of free throws.
A light show, Scott Van Pelt joining the Gameday crew, Terps head coach Mark Turgeon addressing the fans and Anthony Cowan Jr. showing up in a Len Bias jersey were some of the many highlights from the pre-game festivities.
The Spartans jumped out to a 17-2 run thanks to shots from Aaron Henry, Malik Hall and Rocket Watts. The Terps got off to a rocky start after all of the hype surrounding this game. Jalen Smith hit a three in response to get the crowd going.
The Spartans knocked down 7-of-8 shots during this run. They used their defense to jumpstart their offense in addition to securing rebounds.
Darryl Morsell helped start a 7-0 run that cut the Terps deficit to five, 17-12 before Cassius Winston hit a pair of free throws.
Midway through the first half, both teams were doing a great job of ball security. There was only one turnover between both teams at the time. The game was physical early on and both coaches were intense.
Aaron Wiggins caught a lob pass from Cowan Jr., gathered himself and got the layup. Smith followed that with a bucket of his own. Ricky Lindo Jr. tied the game at 23 briefly with a three-pointer.
The Spartans lead grew to seven, 30-23, thanks to the rebounding and hustle of Xavier Tillman and shooting of Cassius Winston.
He had 10 points to lead all scorers under eight minutes to go until halftime and Smith had seven points to lead the Terps.
The Terps missed seven shots in a row leading to a 9-0 run by Michigan State. Cowan Jr. broke the drought with a dribble-drive layup and the Spartans had a 32-25 lead with 2:44 left until halftime.
The Spartans went into halftime up 40-29 after a last-second half-court shot went down courtesy of Winston. It was about 60-feet from the basket.
The week of the buzzer-beaters continues.
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) March 1, 2020
Here, it's reigning B1G POY Cassius Winston giving No. 24 @MSU_Basketball the double-digit lead at the half. pic.twitter.com/trKucwMYqH
He had 13 points and three rebounds at the break. Tillman had six points and five rebounds. Henry and Hall combined for 12 points and six rebounds.
For the Terps, Smith had 9 points and seven rebounds. They needed to do a better job in the second half of getting the ball inside to Scott and Smith. When they get the ball off of a defensive rebound, they need to push the ball down the floor and make the Spartans run.
While the Terps were able to find their way back into this game midway through the first half, their bad shot selection set them back.
The Spartans opened the second half with a 9-4 run thanks to Henry and Tillman continuing their productive play on the court. They led by 14, 49-33.
The Spartans were 6-of-6 from the field which helped them get out to a 54-38 lead. Winston and Tillman combined for 28 points, eight assists and eight rebounds with a little over 15 minutes left in the game.
After Hakim Hart’s three-pointer to make the score 56-43, Hall made a three to counter. That was their eighth made shot out of nine in the second half.
Scott made a three to bring the Terps within 14, 61-47. Just when you thought the Terps were going to get a stop and gain some momentum, the Spartans got another offensive rebound and a second-chance basket.
Under 10 minutes to go, the Terps were down 66-53 and the crowd volume increased. We’ve seen this same scenario before. Could the Terps come back to beat the Spartans?
The Spartans started both halves of this game shooting the ball efficiently. They needed to lock down defensively late in the game and that’s exactly what they did.
At the 5:31 mark, the Terps were down 10, 71-61. A four-point foul on Jalen Smith gave Winston 20 points and six assists on the night. It was set up by Tillman’s court vision after a rebound.
Michigan State basketball redeemed themselves down the stretch and beat the Maryland Terrapins 78-66. The Spartans not only shot the ball well to start each half, but they also made shots to prevent momentum swings.
MOOOOOOOOOOOOD #GoGreen pic.twitter.com/AT5AC9A1c7
— Michigan State Men's Basketball (@MSU_Basketball) March 1, 2020
Tillman had a 14 point and 12-rebound double-double with six assists. Watts and Hall combined for 29 points.
Smith had a 20 point and 12 rebound double-double for the Terps. They were unable to use the same comeback magic that won them the first game, but they are still in first place in the Big Ten. What that means is that they have to win out the rest of the way to secure the Big Ten regular-season title.
The Maryland Terrapins play the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at the Rutgers Athletic Center on Tuesday and close the regular season at home against Michigan. Michigan State basketball plays Penn State on the road Tuesday as well and finishes the season at home against Ohio State.