Wells Hits Game-Winner as #13 Terps Top Wildcats
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) -- Melo
Trimble scored 27 points, and a tip-in by Dez
Wells with 1.4 seconds left capped a furious comeback that enabled No. 13
Maryland to squeeze past Northwestern 68-67 Sunday night.
The Terrapins (18-3, 6-2 Big Ten) never led until Trimble made two free throws with 21 seconds remaining to make it 66-65. After Tre Demps hit a jumper for the Wildcats, Trimble missed a three-point try and Wells snared the rebound before scoring with a layup off the glass. Northwestern (10-10, 1-6 Big Ten) called a timeout but could not get off a shot before the buzzer sounded. There were several times during the game that it seemed Maryland was doomed to its first losing streak of the season. The Terrapins trailed by 14 in the first half by 63-52 with 3:46 left. But Trimble and Wells led the Terps back, with help from a three-pointer by Jake Layman that cut the gap to 65-62 with 1:05 to go. Trimble went 9-for-10 at the foul line and Wells scored 17 for the Terrapins, who improved to 3-0 following a defeat. "I'm really happy for the outcome. I'm happy for the team and our players," head coach Mark Turgeon said. "They kept fighting on a night that they weren't terrific or great. I'm really happy for Dez Wells that he got the tip-in at the end of the game. Melo Trimble was Melo Trimble, doing what he does. I thought the crowd was unbelievable. They never gave up on us and energized us throughout the game." Brian McIntosh scored 21 for the Wildcats, who have lost six in a row -- the last three by a total of five points. After going 16-for-23 from the floor in the first half, Northwestern went 0-for-4 with two turnovers at the outset of the second half. That enabled Maryland to close to 41-35, but the Terrapins then committed four turnovers in a 38-second span and went scoreless for more than three minutes to fall behind by 12. It was 54-42 with 12 minutes to go, and the Wildcats led by 11 before Maryland's Evan Smotrycz made two free throws. Trimble followed with a 3-pointer, and a free throw by Wells cut it to 55-50 with 8:34 remaining. But while the Terrapins failed to score over the next four minutes, McIntosh made two straight baskets after a layup by Alex Olah for a 61-50 lead. That wasn't enough to provide Northwestern with its first victory in 2015. McIntosh scored 13 points on six-for-eight shooting in the first half, and the Wildcats limited Maryland to just 10 baskets and seven rebounds in going up 41-30. Northwestern opened by making 10 of its first 13 shots from the floor, including five-for-seven from three-point range, for a 25-13 lead. Wells then made a pair of three-point plays in a 9-2 spurt before Demps drilled a three-pointer to ignite an 11-2 spree that made it 38-24. Maryland travels to Ohio State on Thursday for a 7 p.m. tilt on ESPN.  |
