By Ethan Cadeaux (@Ethan_301)

It almost seems like every game Maryland basketball has played this season has gone the same: they start out slow, create a huge deficit to overcome, yet, are led by their leaders: guards Melo Trimble and Rasheed Sulaimon, as well as forwards Robert Carter and Jake Layman, to overcome this deficit and squeeze out a win.

Tonight was just another episode in this series. But this time, the Terps relied on someone else to bring home a victory.

Led by freshman center Diamond Stone’s record-setting 39 points and 12 rebounds, the Terps (12-1, 1-0) rallied from two double-digit deficits, one in each half, including a 13 point deficit with just six and a half minutes left in the game, to salvage a win over Penn State (9-5, 0-1), 60-54, to open Big Ten play.

32 of Stone’s 39 came in the second half, where he shot 8-11 from the field and made 16 of 19 free throws over the final twenty minutes of play. 19 of Stone’s total 39 came from the charity stripe.

“I think Diamond likes the bright lights, he likes the big stage,” said Terps head coach Mark Turgeon. “He liked to be challenged and we were extremely challenged today.”

Stone set the record for most points scored in a game by a freshman in Maryland history, breaking Joe Smith’s record of 33 points in 1993. The Terps needed every one of Stone’s 39, who started this game on the bench.

“I don’t pay too much mind to it,” said Stone on breaking records. “This is just a regular game from me. I knew I was in the zone, but I wasn’t aware of any points or records.”

Stone went on to say, “We’re trying to win the Big Ten and this is the first game. It means a lot to get this first win.”

Stone, who was a five star recruit, was projected as a lottery pick in the 2016 NBA Draft before playing a minute of college basketball. While his season has been up and down, there is no question – he showed lottery pick potential after tonight’s performance.

Although the Terps were able to scrape out a win, it was not pretty. They suffered from serious offensive woes tonight. In the first half, the Terps shot just 26 percent, going 6-23 from the field. They finished shooting just a measly 33.3 percent from the field. Trimble, Sulaimon and Layman were a combined 5-of-26 from the floor.

Layman and Carter each made a three on the Terps first two possessions of the game, but then the Terps missed fifteen straight triples until 5:18 left in the game, when Trimble connected to bring the Terps within five.

The Terps made three of their final four three pointers, none bigger than an uncontested one from Carter via a Trimble pass, to put the Terps up five with 31 seconds to play, ending Penn State’s hopes.

“I shoot so many shots, so it was never a thought in my mind that I was going to miss it,” said Carter on his three-pointer late in the game. “Thank God I made it.”

Although the Terps struggled offensively throughout the game, they delivered one of their best defensive performances of the season, which ultimately led them to victory.

But good teams find ways to win anyway they can, and that is what the Terps did tonight.

“When you come back and win games like that, it gives you a lot of confidence,” said Turgeon. “Offensively, this is the worst we have been by a long shot, not even close. To still go out and get it done is good for us.”

Although it is just their second season in the Big Ten, the Terps are still undefeated in home games during conference play. The sold out Xfinity crowd tonight definitely helped keep their home game winning streak in tact.

“In the end our crowd was just remarkable,” said Turgeon, on the sellout crowd for a game over Winter Break. “Down 13 with six to go, it didn’t look very good, we didn’t have a lot going, couldn’t make a shot. We really executed down the stretch, which was a good sign for me.”

Whether the Terps take this game as a positive sign – they overcame two double-digit deficits to win – or negatively, the fact that they shot very poorly and barely won over an opponent they were favored by 15, is yet to be seen.

The Terps are back in action on the road Saturday, as they face off with a Northwestern squad that the Terps needed a Dez Wells’ put-back layup in the final seconds to defeat last year.