Maryland pulls away from Cleveland State to remain unbeaten
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Version 0 of 1. The second-ranked Maryland men’s basketball team overcame a spotty first half by asserting its superior size, speed and skill following intermission to pull away from pesky Cleveland State, 80-63, Saturday night at Xfinity Center in the final tune-up for a game the Terrapins have awaited since the schedule came out over the summer. That showdown against No. 9 North Carolina is set for Tuesday in Chapel Hill, N.C., as part of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, and the Terrapins, at least in the second half, showed glimpses of a team with the same Final Four aspirations as the Tar Heels. In front of an announced 17,282, junior forward Robert Carter Jr. led the way for Maryland with 17 points, eight rebounds and three assists, and sophomore guard Jared Nickens added a career-high 16 points, making 4 of 6 three-pointers. The Terrapins also got 15 points from Diamond Stone. Stone, the highly touted freshman center who selected Maryland over Wisconsin, last season’s national runners-up, made 6 of 10 field goals to go along with three rebounds as Maryland remained undefeated and won its third in a row by double figures. It was the Terrapins’ first game since wining twice in as many days to secure the Cancun Challenge title Wednesday in Mexico. “We practiced really well last night, and we had a good shoot-around today,” Maryland Coach Mark Turgeon said. “We were up 20 in the second half, so I guess I can’t be too hard on them because it’s hard to win. Yeah, maybe it was a little flat to start, and maybe we were looking forward to what lies ahead, but we have to be more consistent with our effort.” The Terrapins (6-0) shot 58 percent, including 7 for 14 from three-point range, assisted on 22 of 29 field goals and made 15 of 18 from the free throw line. Cleveland State, meanwhile, attempted just two free throws but got a game-high 20 points from Demonte Flannigan. The junior forward made 9 of 17 field goal attempts and chipped in four rebounds. Ahead by nine points early in the second half, Maryland took control for good with a 10-4 run. Senior forward Jake Layman started the spurt with two free throws, and Nickens sank a three-pointer. Stone followed with a pair of foul shots, and by the time Layman sank a three-pointer that rattled around the rim and fell through, Maryland was ahead 64-49 with 7 minutes 35 seconds to play. Maryland came out of the locker room after halftime with crisp ball movement that led to three straight baskets within close range. Rasheed Sulaimon factored in on all six points, first stealing the ball near midcourt and scoring on an uncontested fast-break layup. Moments later, the Duke transfer delivered a pass to Stone for a two-handed dunk. Sulaimon drove deep into the lane on Maryland’s next possession and got the ball to Carter, who finished with a dunk that gave the Terrapins a 43-33 lead and brought the crowd to its feet. Cleveland State Coach Gary Waters immediately called timeout with 17:43 to play, but the lead expanded to 50-37 when Carter swished his second three-pointer. “Coach, he was mad at us going into halftime, and we just responded,” Nickens said. “We didn’t want to make it a close game, so we just came out, played harder, played with more effort and got the job done.” Cleveland State (2-4) briefly brought the deficit in the second half to less than double figures with a 6-2 burst, all courtesy of Rob Edwards. The freshman guard scored on a layup, two free throws and a putback to draw the Vikings to 52-43 with 13:20 left. Maryland’s only points during Edwards’s scoring binge came via a dunk from backup center Damonte Dodd. But Maryland grew the lead to 21, its largest of the game, with 1:46 to go thanks to Stone’s layup. The largest lead for Maryland in the first half, a 36-29 advantage, came courtesy of Nickens’s three consecutive three-pointers. The 6-foot-7 backup guard made his third thanks to an assist from Carter, who initially missed a short jumper of his own and collected the offensive rebound before passing to Nickens. “He was amazing today,” Carter, a Georgia Tech transfer, said of Nickens. “Every day we just try to make the right play. Tonight was his night. He was on. We were just trying to find him. He got some good looks, and he knocked them down.” |