Maryland men’s basketball pulls away late to beat No. 22 UCLA, 79-61

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COLLEGE PARK — Maryland men’s basketball secured the signature win it has been searching for.

For the first time in four attempts this season, the Terps knocked off a ranked opponent by taking down No. 22 UCLA, 79-61, on Friday night before an announced 15,172 at Xfinity Center.

Maryland (12-4, 2-3 Big Ten) ended a two-game losing skid and a three-game rut against league competition. Perhaps just as importantly for the team’s confidence level, it scored its first victory against ranked competition after setbacks to then-No. 15 Marquette, 78-74, on Nov. 15, then-No. 8 Purdue, 83-78, on Dec. 8, and then-No. 9 Oregon, 83-79, on Sunday.

The Terps had emerged from four consecutive matchups against ranked opponents on the wrong end of those outcomes. The last upset they had registered was a 75-67 victory at then-No. 10 Illinois on Jan. 14, 2024.

Junior point guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie powered Maryland with a career-high 27 points and added four assists, four steals and two rebounds. Senior power forward Julian Reese, a Randallstown native and St. Frances graduate, chipped in 16 points, 10 rebounds and two steals for his seventh double-double of the season, and graduate student small forward Selton Miguel accumulated 11 points, three assists and two steals.

While the team has struggled in true road games and limped to a 0-3 record, it improved to 10-1 at home this season.

Although the Terps constructed 10-point leads in each half, the Bruins refused to relent and continued to work to remain within striking distance. But after junior power forward Tyler Bilodeau missed a 1-and-1 chance at the free-throw line, UCLA coach Mick Cronin was tagged with a technical foul with 5:11 left in the second half for straying too far onto the court and getting in the way of an official.

Cronin vociferously disputed the call, earning a second technical foul and an ejection. Gillespie drained four consecutive free throws to give Maryland a 64-51 advantage it would not relinquish.

Armed with a 40-36…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/maryland-men-basketball-pulls-away-032200528.html

Author : Baltimore Sun

Publish date : 2025-01-11 03:22:00

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