Box Score COLLEGE PARK, MD – Maryland men's basketball entered the locker room trailing by 12 points and head coach Kevin Willard looked for a much needed spark. Donta Scott answered the call, scoring 20 of his 22 points in the second half to lead the Terps to a, 64-57, victory over Michigan on Thursday at XFINITY Center.
The Terps (10-6, 2-3 B1G) exploded in the second half, outscoring the Wolverines 43-24. Maryland knocked down six 3-pointers after connecting on just one the entire first half.
The momentum changed with Scott knocking down a 3-pointer to cement himself among the top-10 three-point scorers in program history. Less than two minutes later, he knocked down another to cut the deficit to two points. Scott later gave the Terps their first lead since the 10:01 mark of the opening stanza with the third of his four 3-pointers in the half. Scott remained perfect from the three-point line in the second half, making all four of his attempts.
It was the first time Maryland rallied from a double-digit halftime deficit to win a game since Feb. 26, 2020 at Minnesota. The Terps trailed that game 47-31 at intermission before rallying for a 74-73 win in the "Minneapolis Miracle" game.
Jahmir Young, Julian Reese and DeShawn Harris-Smith reinforced Scott by joining him in double-figures. Harris-Smith had the best conference game of his young career with 10 points, five rebounds and three assists. Reese grabbed 13 rebounds for his seventh double-double this season and blocked five shots and grabbed three steals during the contest.
The Terps have won 25 games at home over the last two seasons, the most wins of any Big Ten school during that stretch. Their record improves to 25-2 with the only losses coming from No. 16 UCLA on Dec. 14, 2022 and No. 1 Purdue on Jan. 2, 2024. UCLA finished the season as No. 7 in the AP poll.
Michigan (6-10, 1-4 B1G) received a balanced scoring effort, but Olivier Nkamhoua led the all Wolverines with 18 points. Michigan's leading scorer, Dug McDaniel, did not travel with the team as he served the first of a six game road suspension, announced Wednesday.
Breaking Down the Action
- Just three minutes into the game, Donta Scott intercepted a Michigan pass in the backcourt and finished the fastbreak with a thunderous dunk over a Wolverine defender.
- Kevin Willard called a timeout after Michigan went on a 10-0 run at the 5:34 mark. The Wolverines were 3-6 from beyond the arch while the Terps were 0-9.
- Maryland entered halftime trailing 33-21. The Terps defense forced nine turnovers, but the Terps shot just 33 percent from the floor during the half.
- Donta Scott and Jamie Kaiser, Jr. connected on back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the Michigan lead to one point. Scott knocked down two free-throws to tie the game up at 44 shortly after.
- The 3-pointers kept falling and the Terps captured their first lead since the 10:01 mark of the opening half. Maryland held on to complete the emphatic comeback win.
Willard's Take
"Donta has been playing like that in practice all year. He's been playing really good over the last four games," Willard said regarding Scott's second half resurgence. "He had some good looks in the first half and we struggled in the first half. I think he was upset with himself at halftime and he came out and he was very animated in the huddle before he went out, and he just did what a senior does."
"DeShawn has been putting a lot of work in every morning in the gym," Willard said referencing Harris-Smith's night. "He's still trying to figure out Big Ten basketball, and I love the fact he came out in the second half, he wanted the basketball, he made the first aggressive drive of the half. He's been working hard."
From The Guys
"I don't think I really lifted up the rest of the team. I feel like they lifted me up," Scott said respecting his performance. "Once I got going and the energy started kicking in and then everybody started feeding off my energy, that's when it just started going and getting better and better on the defensive end. And the offense started coming to us."
Double-Figure Factors
- Donta Scott (22 points) tallied double-figures for the 73rd time in his career and the eighth time this season. It was also the first time this season Scott scored 20-plus points and the seventh time of his career.
- Julian Reese (14 points) had the 41st double-figure game of his career, with the junior doing so for the 12th time this season. He also recorded his seventh double-double of the season and the 14th of his career.
- Jahmir Young (12 points) dropped double-figures for the 120th time in his career and the 14th time in 15 games he's played this season. It's also the 11th game in a row that he's played and scored double-digits.
- DeShawn Harris-Smith (10 points) scored in double-figures for the fifth time so far this season. It was his best scoring game in Big Ten play.
Fear The Jahmir
- With 12 points in the game, Jahmir Young added to his career scoring total and now has 2,264 points. He is the second-leading active scorer in the nation behind Texas' Max Abmas (2,818).
- Young is the only active player in the nation with 2,000+ points, 600+ rebounds and 400 assists as he has 2,264 points, 687 rebounds and 422 assists.
- Young now has 843 points in his second season at Maryland. He is closing in on being the sixth NCAA player since 2006 to post 1,000 points at two different institutions.
- Young was one of the top scorers nationally in December. The fifth-year senior ranked 7th nationally with a 24.2 point per game average (the third-best average among Big Ten players) despite missing one game.
Scott Climbing the Charts
- Scott cemented himself in the top 10 for career 3-pointers made. With four in the game today, he now has 184 for his career to pass Steve Blake for ninth all-time, who made 182 from 1999-2003.
- After scoring 22 points, Donta Scott increased his career total to 1,493 which is 19th all-time. He's now 68 points away from next on the list, Greg Manning, who scored 1561 points from 1977-81.
- Scott grabbed four rebounds to increase his career total to 785 good for No. 11 all-time. He passed Ekene Ibekwe who grabbed 781 boards from 2003-07.
- Scott played in his 145th career game as a Terp to add to his all-time school record for games played. Scott also started his 130th career game which ranks tied for second-most in program history. The school record is 136 by Steve Blake (1999-2003). He tied Anthony Cowan Jr. with 130 starts from 2016-20.
Home Sweet Home
- Maryland's 25-2 home record between 2022-23 and 2023-24 ranks as the best home record in the Big Ten. It also is tied for 8th nationally for the most home wins.
- Home court has been especially advantageous for the Terps this year as they have a +21.8 scoring difference compared to road/neutral games. Maryland is averaging 79.8 points at home and 58.0 points on the road.
Numbers To Know
- 0: Threes made by Michigan in the second half after making five in the first.
- 4: Donta Scott made all four of his three-point attempts in the second half.
- 5: Blocks by Reese, the most he's had in a conference game.
- 12: The Terps rallied from down 12 at halftime for its largest comeback from a halftime deficit since Feb. 26. 2020.
- 20: Donta Scott scored 20 of his 22 points in the second half.
- 24.2 Points per game during December for Jahmir Young - the 7th most nationally & 3rd in the Big Ten.
- 25: Wins at home for the Terps over the last two seasons - the most wins of any Big Ten school during that stretch.
- 63.7: Points allowed per game, ranking 27th nationally entering the game.
- 145: Games played for Donta Scott, extending his school record.
Up Next
- Maryland is back on the road for a bout against Illinois on Sunday. The game will tip-off at 2 p.m. ET, at State Farm Center. It will be televised on Big Ten Network and fans can listen on Maryland Sports Radio Network.
