Melo Trimble scored 19 points, and No. 14 Maryland beat Michigan, 66-56, Saturday to complete an undefeated season at home in the Big Ten.
A gritty defensive battle turned in the Terrapins’ favor late in the first half, and Maryland (24-5, 12-4 Big Ten) never trailed over the final 20 minutes.
The Terrapins finished 18-1 at home, with their the only defeat coming against Virginia on Dec. 3. Maryland’s 9-0 mark at home in the Big Ten includes Tuesday’s win over fifth-ranked Wisconsin, the conference leader.
Dez Wells had 13 points, six rebounds and six turnovers in his final home game at Maryland.
Zak Irvin led Michigan (14-14, 7-9 Big Ten) with 15 points. The Wolverines went 19-for-52 from the floor, including 5-for-21 beyond the arc, in losing for the sixth time in seven games.
Maryland let an eight-point lead shrink to 43-40 before Trimble sandwiched a pair of 3-pointers around a basket by Irvin to make it 49-42.
It was 49-44 before Wells hit a jumper and Trimble sank three foul shots for a 10-point cushion with 5:18 remaining. Soon after that, 3-pointers by Jake Layman and Wells made it 60-48.
That was enough to assure the Terrapins their fifth consecutive win. They won the previous four games by a total of 15 points.
Maryland closed the first half with a 12-0 run for a 30-21 lead. Trimble, Layman and Richaud Pack contributed 3-pointers to the surge.
Before that, the game featured four ties and eight lead changes.
Michigan shot 32 percent from the floor before the break, missed eight of nine attempts from beyond the arc and went scoreless over the final 4 minutes, 57 seconds.
The Wolverines played their 10th consecutive game without injured guards Derrick Walton Jr. and Caris LeVert. Michigan is 3-7 without them.
Maryland, meanwhile, was without 7-foot-1 forward Michal Cekovsky, who injured his left knee in warmups and did not play.
The victory was Maryland’s first by double digits since Jan. 17 against Michigan State.
Forward Evan Smotrycz, one of seven seniors honored before the game, played 69 games at Michigan before transferring to Maryland. None of those seven seniors started their career as scholarship players at Maryland.
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