PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) — Freshman Jalen Smith finished with 16 points and six rebounds, a nice follow-up to his game-winning layup against No. 24 Nebraska last time out, to lead Maryland past Rutgers 77-63 on Saturday afternoon at a sold-out RAC.

"Obviously, it is is hard to win on the road," said head coach Mark Turgeon. "So to win the way we did was good. More importantly, it's how we're playing, we're getting better ... [It was] as good as we've been defensively, and we were as good as we've been offensively and shared the ball."

After Rutgers led 15-12, Maryland (12-3, 3-1 Big Ten Conference) would go on a 28-4 run in the final 8:55 of the first half to take a 40-19 lead into the break. Rutgers' only hopes of a monumental comeback came when the Scarlet Knights (7-6, 0-3) started the second stanza on a 6-0 run, but the Terrapins answered and kept their lead above 15 until the waning moments of the game.

Anthony Cowan Jr. had 15 points for the Terrapins, while Bruno Fernando totaled 10 points, nine rebounds and five assists. It was Cowan's 19th consecutive game with double-figures dating back to last season.

Overall, the Terps finished with five players in double-figures, while sophomore Darryl Morsell was lauded for his defensive effort.

Rutgers was led by Montez Mathis, who had 11 points and eight rebounds despite early foul trouble.

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Maryland: The Terrapins have a quick turnaround as they travel to Minnesota for a contest Tuesday night.