COLLEGE PARK, MD — Ja’Kobi Gillespie took a quick jab step with his right foot. The Belmont transfer stepped back to his left and drained a long-range shot — a third straight three-pointer for Maryland men’s basketball to start its conference opener against Ohio State.
The Terps’ starting point guard flew back on defense where he double-teamed a Buckeye ball handler in front of Maryland’s animated bench. Gillespie, Selton Miguel, and a dozen of screaming Terps on the sideline drew a Buckeyes travel.
The sequence put Maryland (8-1) up six in front of a frenzied XFINITY Center crowd. The Terps never came close to squandering the early advantage in a statement win, 83-59, over Ohio State (5-3) on Wednesday night.
“We had our best practice we’ve had all year yesterday … what you saw in the first half was how we practiced,” Maryland coach Kevin Willard said. “And I thought the students and the vibe from the start was phenomenal. This building is special when it’s rocking.”
Wednesday night’s rout was Maryland’s second-largest conference-opening victory since joining the Big Ten in 2014.
Gillespie led the way offensively as five Terps scored in double figures and freshman center Derik Queen (17 points, 11 rebounds) had his 3rd career double-double. Gillespie paced the Terps with 23 points while tying Queen for a team-high 13 first-half points. The 26 combined points made up more than half of Maryland’s early scoring as it led 50-17 at the break.
The Terps’ 50-point outburst also accounted for their highest-scoring first half since the program moved to the Big Ten.
The 33-point margin was also Maryland’s largest-ever halftime lead in a Big Ten game. It was a far greater advantage than the Terps had at any point this season against their previous two power-conference opponents.
The quick lead was largely made possible by the Terps’ suffocating defense against an Ohio State that looked vastly disoriented following its upset loss to Pittsburgh on Friday.
“We’re the eighth ranked defensive team in the country right now, so we’ve been doing it all year,” Willard said. “But to do it in a conference game was the most important thing.”
Maryland forced the Buckeyes to commit 12 turnovers in the opening 20 minutes, outscoring Ohio State off of those takeaways 18-0.
“The main thing that got us going tonight [was our defense],” Gillespie said. “Everyone was engaged defensively, so that helped us offensively.”
Queen particularly shined in his first career conference game. Against an Ohio State team that wasn’t starting any player over 6’ 9 or 220 pounds, the 6′ 10, 246-pound Queen feasted with the ball in his hands. The freshman scored in a plethora of manners — midrange jumpers, side hooks in the paint, and low post spin moves — as he finished the night 6-10 from the field.
“Maryland fans better get used to watching [Queen] because I don’t think he’s going to be here next year,” Willard said. “He’s an old-school type of player and that’s probably the best compliment I can give somebody … you’re seeing what a pro looks like at 19 years old.”
Maryland brought the same intensity in the second half, bullying its way to its first Quad-1 win of the season.
After nearly 27 minutes of gameplay, Ohio State finally made its first three-pointer following misses on its opening ten attempts from deep. Maryland had swished home its first triple on the game’s opening possession just 18 seconds in.
The Terps’ attention now shifts to their first true road game of the season in this Sunday’s matchup at No. 8 Purdue. The Boilermakers (7-1) will play at Penn State tomorrow before hosting Maryland in one of the most highly-anticipated Big Ten games of the early season.
