COLLEGE PARK, MD – Maryland men's basketball improved to 12-1 at home this season with its 69-66 win over Nebraska at XFINITY Center on Sunday. The 12 wins at home are the most amongst all teams in Division I. Maryland (14-5, 4-4 Big Ten), No. 25 in the NCAA NET, has also beaten Nebraska in seven consecutive home games.
Trailing 55-54, seven straight points by Rodney Rice and a 3-pointer by Ja'Kobi Gillespie contributed to a 10-0 run by the Terps spanning two minutes late in the second half, giving Maryland a 64-55 lead. The run gave the Terps the lead for good. The Terps' defense buckled down and held Nebraska to a stretch of 1-of-13 shooting for nearly six minutes in building a 66-57 edge.
Nebraska rallied to tie the game at 66 with 1:02 left in the game, but Gillespie connected on a layup with 42 seconds remaining to regain Maryland's lead, 68-66. Then Julian Reese stole the ball, giving the Terps back possession. Rice was then fouled and converted 1-of-2 free throws. Nebraska put up a 3-pointer with two seconds remaining. It missed, and Jordan Geronimo collected his season-high seventh rebound to seal the win.
Gillespie eclipsed 1,000 career points with a deep step-back 3-pointer with three seconds left in the first half. As a result, the Terps went into the locker room with a 37-35 advantage. The junior transfer from Belmont led all Maryland scorers with 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting. It was the 12th 20-point game of his career and his fourth of the season. Gillespie also dished out five assists and collected four steals.
Rice finished his outing racking up 15 points, as many of his shots came during crucial game moments.
Selton Miguel was the third Maryland guard to net double-digit points, totaling 13. The Gillespie, Miguel and Rice trio combined for 10-of-24 shooting from the three-point line.
Geronimo, who had played six minutes over the last four games, contributed 11 energetic minutes, grabbing a season-high seven rebounds and two blocks.
Nebraska (12-6, 2-5 Big Ten) was led by Andrew Morgan's season-high 17 points. The Huskers' leading scorer, Brice Williams (18.9 PPG), was limited to 14 points on 6-of-14 shooting.
In 17 all-time meetings against Nebraska, Maryland boasts a 13-4 head-to-head record.
The Terps are now 8-1 all-time against the Huskers at XFINITY Center, including winning the last seven meetings in College Park.
Willard's Take
"The biggest encouragement is the fact that the only guy that's gone against Fred's defense is really Julian, and it's a unique defense where they really take away post-play. Everything's forced baseline. They just crowd the post. So we only had one day of prep, so we spent most of the time on the defensive side. I thought Ju did a good job as the game went on, just trying to explain to the guys what was going on with the defense, when to throw it to him, when not to throw it to him because, especially with their size, It's a unique defense. If you haven't played against it's really tough."
From The Guys
"Coach drew that play up, and I knew I just needed to get downhill, try to get fouled, or get a layup," Gillespie said of his crucial go-ahead bucket. "That steal Ju had was definitely big. That won us the game really."
Breaking Down The Action
- Maryland got out to an early lead. It led 10-7 at the first media timeout (13:44) in the first quarter. Rodney Rice and Selton Miguel each drilled a 3-pointer to lead the Terps' scoring attack.
- The Terps forced back-to-back turnovers in just two minutes and scored on each one. Overall, they scored on three straight possessions at the rim to lead 16-9.
- Nebraska pulled ahead, leading 29-26 with 3:36 to go in the first half. Andrew Morgan paced all Huskers scorers with 12 points on 5-of-5 shooting.
- Jordan Geronimo came off the bench and stopped Nebraska's 7-0 run with a converted and-one at 2:55. Miguel then scored a 3-pointer at 2:19, tying the game at 31 apiece.
- Ja'Kobi Gillespie followed the sequence with a 3-pointer at 1:21 to take back the lead at 34-33. Nebraska scored shortly after, but Gillespie knocked down another three, this time with three seconds until half to give his team a 37-35 lead heading into the locker room. The score also gave the junior 1,000 career points.
- Maryland led 46-42 at the 15:37 media timeout in the second half. Miguel scored on three consecutive possessions, adding seven points to his 13 on the day.
- The Terps maintained the lead at 52-48 at 10:45. Gillespie's fourth three of the day put them up by four points. He had 17 in the contest.
- Trailing 55-54, seven straight points by Rice and a 3-pointer by Gillespie contributed to a 10-0 run by the Terps spanning two minutes late in the half, giving Maryland a 64-55 lead.
- Nebraska tied the game with just under a minute to play at 66 apiece. But Gillespie made a layup with 42 seconds remaining to regain Maryland's lead, 68-66.
- Julian Reese stole the ball, giving the Terps back possession. Rice was then fouled and converted 1-of-2 free throws. Nebraska put up a 3-pointer with two seconds remaining. It missed, and Geronimo collected his season-high seventh rebound to seal the win.
Double-Figure Factors
- Ja'Kobi Gillespie scored 22 points and earned his 55th career game in double figures. It was his 15th game scoring double digits this season. He now has 1,009 career points.
- Rodney Rice netted 15 points and scored in double digits for his 16th career game. It was his 13th game in double figures as a Terp this season.
- Selton Miguel tallied 13 points and earned his 74th career game in double figures. It was his 13th as a Terp this season. He leads the Terps with 1,401 career points in his five-year career.
Home Cooking
- Maryland is 323-76 all-time at the XFINITY Center, including 38-8 under Kevin Willard. Under Willard, the Terps have six home Top-25 victories, highlighted by the 2022-23 win over No. 3 Purdue.
- This season, the Terps are 12-1 at home, tied for the second-most home wins among all teams in Division I. Only Missouri (14-0) has more home wins than the Terps.
- Maryland won a program-record 14 consecutive Big Ten conference games at XFINITY, including all 10 games in 2022-23 and the final three of 2021-22.
- Maryland's 16-1 home record in 2022-23 was the best since 2019-20 and the eighth time overall that the Terps had won 16 or more games at home. In 2012-13 and 2014-15, the Terps won 18 games at home, going 18-3 and 18-1, respectively.
Series History
- In 17 all-time meetings against Nebraska, Maryland boasts a 13-4 head-to-head record.
- The Terps are now 8-1 all-time against the Huskers at XFINITY Center, including winning the last seven meetings in College Park.
- Kevin Willard has won seven of his last eight games against Nebraska.
- Nine of the 17 all-time meetings have been decided by five or fewer points.
Numbers And Nuggets
- 6: This was the sixth time this season that Maryland made 10 or more 3-pointers in a game.
- 7: Maryland has won seven consecutive games at home against Nebraska.
- 10: This was the 10th game this season Julian Reese collected 10 or more rebounds.
- 12: The Terps are 12-1 at home this season.
- 12: Ja'Kobi Gillespie has 12 20-point games in his career, including four this season.
- 13: Maryland is 13-4 against Nebraska all-time.
- 23: The Terps have 23 10-0 or better runs this year.
- 25: The Terps are ranked No. 25 in the NET Rankings.
- 1,000: Gillespie scored his 1,000th career point in the game.
- 1,401: Miguel leads the Terps with 1,401 career points in his five-year career.
Up Next
- Maryland will play at No. 13 Illinois on Jan. 23. The game will tip off at 9 p.m. EST and be streamed on FS1 and Maryland Sports Radio Network.
