Wisconsin taking on Maryland at home had all the elements of a trap game for the No. 6 Badgers, and that’s exactly what it turned out to be on Monday night.
An 0-2 in the Big Ten Maryland team starved for a win showed that they were the hungrier team at the Kohl Center. The Terrapins picked up their first win of the Big Ten season with a second half shooting barrage that erased a four-point deficit after 20 minutes. Shooting nearly 65% from the field in the second 20 and going 11-12 from the line in the half led Maryland to an improbably come-from-behind 70-64 win in Madison.
The difference in energy was on display from the opening tip, and the Terrapins created their own. The Maryland bench was up and active from the jump, providing the players on the floor with a spark. Head coach Mark Turgeon had his team ready to go after a heartbreaking loss at Purdue on Christmas.
On the flip side, Wisconsin was coming off of their most impressive win of the season. A Christmas Day win over Michigan State on the road felt like the arrival of a national championship contender in this Badger team. This was the classic case of a winless, albeit underdog, opponent wanting and needing this victory more.
Despite a slow start, D’Mitrik Trice paced a Wisconsin offense that eventually found their footing at the end of the first half. The Badgers led 28-24 after a low-scoring first 20 minutes.
After Wisconsin’s defense kept the clamps on and the Badgers built a 7-point lead three minutes into the final half, Maryland caught fire. Through the final ten minutes, it felt as if anything the Terrapins touched turned to flames. Difficult finishes in the lane, corner threes late in the shot clock, free throws for a team that didn’t statistically shoot them all that well a year ago, it didn’t matter. It was all finding the bottom of the net.
Eric Ayala finished with 17 points in the second half (and did not score in the first half) alone to lead Maryland, while big man Donta Scott had a plethora of impressive interior finishes to end up with ten points in the half. Reigning Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year Aaron Wiggins also stepped up with 15 points on the night and nine in the final frame.
All of a sudden, a Wisconsin team that lives inside and has all the answers defensively looked clueless on that end. Despite Trice’s game-high 25 points, struggles from Micah Potter and Nate Reuvers on both ends wrote the story for the Badgers.
Maryland needed it more, wanted it more, and got the result they deserved. The Terps improved to 1-2 in the Big Ten and 6-3 overall, while the No. 6 Badgers picked up their first conference loss to fall to 2-1 in Big Ten play and 8-2 overall.
Next up, No. 6 Wisconsin has No. 21 Minnesota at home on Thursday afternoon.