A tale of two halves on Sunday after Maryland escapes Newark with a 76-75 win over Villanova, overcoming a double-digit deficit after trailing by as many as 14 points.
Derik Queen led the way after scoring 18 of his 22 points in the second-half, including the final four points for the Terps, as one of four players in double figures. Julian Reese, meanwhile, notched his 24th career double-double with 18 points and ten rebounds after teaming up with Rodney Rice for much of the Terps’ scoring through the first half. While Maryland narrowly won the rebound battle (+4), half of the Terps’ points came in the paint in the win.
Maryland had no answer for Eric Dixon, who scored 22 of his career-high 38 points in the first half for his sixth consecutive 20-point performance this season.
Villanova jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead before Julian Reese went on a personal 5-0 run to give the Terps their first lead of the day, but a quick three from Jhamir Brickus gave Villanova the lead right back. Eric Dixon then went on a personal 8-0 run to push Villanova’s lead to 15-5 while the Terps’ offense went cold, generating three turnovers during that stretch. Rodney Rice would be the one to provide the spark, though, adding six straight points as Maryland knocked down six of their next eight shots.
But Maryland had as many turnovers as they did field goals through the first 11 minutes before Julian Reese’s jumper from the free-throw line cut the Terps’ deficit to five. After both teams traded layups, Villanova closed the first half on an 11-4 run to grow the Terps’ deficit to as many as 14.
After trailing 40-28 at the break, Maryland came out with an uptick in energy to begin the second half after a 6-0 run in the opening minutes cut the deficit to seven, forcing head coach Kyle Neptune to call a 30-second timeout. Villanova would be able to whether the Terps’ scoring through the second half until the 14 minute mark when Derik Queen flushed home a dunk, then Rodney Rice turning the second-chance opportunity into a three trimmed the deficit to five.
After Derik Queen was called for a debatable goaltend that was later overturned, a three from Malachi Palmer would then trim the deficit to four, but the Wildcats responded with a three on the ensuing possession to quiet the crowd. Two minutes later, a triple from Jay Young cut the deficit to two. Ja’Kobi Gillespie then drilled a pair of free-throws to tie the game at 55 before Derik Queen hit a beautiful fadeaway to give Maryland a 57-55 lead, their first of the day. Queen flushed in another bucket on the ensuing possession to cap off the 9-0 run that gave Maryland all the momentum.
The two teams would then trade leads 11 times over the final 7:18.
After Ja’Kobi Gillespie split a pair of free-throws to tie the game at 66 with 3:40 left, Dixon scored the final nine points for Villanova including a countering three to Gillespie’s triple with three minutes left.
Dixon’s three with 75 seconds left pushed the Wildcats ahead, but Derik Queen would be the one to end the game after scoring Maryland’s final four points including the pair of game-winning free-throws with 19 seconds left. Dixon’s corner three-point attempt with less than three seconds remaining missed, cementing the Terps’ first win outside of the Xfinity Center in as many chances.
Top performers:
Derik Queen: 22 pts (9-of-14), 11 reb (6 O), 5 assists, 1 block, 4 TOs
Julian Reese: 18 pts (8-of-12), 10 reb, 2 blocks
Rodney Rice: 16 pts (4-of-13), 3 assists, 2 TOs
Ja'Kobi Gillespie: 12 pts (4-of-10), 3 assists, 3 TOs, 2 steals
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