Gillespie scores 22, reaches 1,000 point plateau as Maryland holds on to beat Nebraska

COLLEGE PARK — Ja’Kobi Gillespie scored a game-high 22 points and reached 1,000 for his collegiate career as Maryland fought back a furious comeback attempt by Nebraska to hold on for a 69-66 win Sunday afternoon

“He’s wired to score,” Maryland coach Kevin Willard said of Gillespie. “He’s wired to go — a guy that size, that that plays as hard as he does on both ends — he’s been really, really productive, and he’s wired that way.”

Gillespie shot 8-of-15 from the floor and 5-of-9 from three to help Maryland rebound from a disappointing overtime loss last Thursday at Northwestern. Rodney Rice added 15 points for Maryland on 5-of-10 shooting, his fourth-straight game in double figures. Selton Miguel scored 13, and Julian Reese had 8 points and 10 rebounds for the Terrapins.

“We needed that win,” Miguel said. “Just came back from a tough loss. Each and every day is a different guy. Ja’Kobi’s playing really good right now for us, really helping us each day. So we just came together, and we really needed this win at home.”

Maryland (14-5, 4-4 Big Ten) put together a 10-0 run in less than two minutes, reaching a double-digit lead for the first time, 64-55, with 6:47 to go. But Nebraska would miraculously counter, erasing Maryland’s advantage as quickly as it was built with a 9-0 run to tie the game at 66 in the final minute. 

“I thought we settled for a couple shots, but give them credit, I really thought they did a good job buckling down, getting stops and getting down in transition,” Willard said of losing the lead.

Out of a timeout, Gillespie responded with a go-ahead layup, Reese got a perimeter steal on Nebraska’s ensuing possession, and a foul shot from Rice with 21.8 seconds left provided the winning margin.

“Coach drew that play up, and I knew I just needed to get downhill, try to get fouled, or get a layup,” Gillespie said of his layup. “And that steal Ju had was definitely big, won us the game really.”

Center Derik Queen’s struggles continued for the second-straight game, as he registered a season-low three points, all the first half and all via free throws. After only scoring 9 at Northwestern, the freshman was held under 10 points for the fifth time this season and the fourth time in his last five games and didn’t make a field goal for the first time this season.

“I think everyone just needs to take a deep breath and realize he’s a freshman going against fifth-year seniors,” Willard said. “I mean, he’s as talented as a player as there is, and he’s going to be in that three-letter league pretty soon, but he’s also going through, you know, we’re asking a freshman to do a whole lot.”

Nebraska’s Brice Williams, who entered the game as the Big Ten’s fifth-leading scorer at 18.9 points per game, was held to 6 points in the first half and finished with 14. The Cornhuskers (12-6, 2-5), who have lost four straight, were led by reserve Andrew Morgan, who scored a season-high 17 on 7-of-12 shooting.

A plodding first half gave way to a more spirited pace thanks to Gillespie, whose steal-and-score pushed Maryland’s lead to the largest of the half at 14-7 with 12:48 to go. Six Nebraska turnovers in the first eight minutes aided Maryland during the stretch.

Unexpectedly, the Huskers found life from Morgan, only their fifth-best scorer.

Normally someone who only averages 7.9 points per game, Morgan scored 10 of his 12 in the first half in a matter of four minutes, flipping the script and leveling the game at 24. A Connor Essegian three off a screen at the top of the key with 6:18 until halftime, his only points of the half, gave the Huskers their first lead, 27-26.

“He came out and just kind of torched us a little bit,” Willard said of Morgan. “I think he caught us a little bit by surprise.”

Gillespie would lead Maryland out of its doldrums, finishing his half with back-to-back threes, part of an 11-4 Terrapins run into the break. His second came as time expired for a 37-35 Terrapins lead, reaching 1,000 points for his college career and barely avoiding what would have been Maryland’s third-straight halftime defect.

“It’s just crazy that I finally hit 1,000, but I didn’t even know during the moment that it was 1,000 points,” Gillespie said.

Nebraska outshot Maryland 55.6% to 46.4% from the floor in the frame, including a lopsided 20-4 advantage in points from the bench, mostly courtesy of Morgan.

Miguel led Maryland out of the break, scoring the first seven Terrapins points in the second half. Morgan nearly matched him with five of his own, as Maryland clung to a 44-40 lead.

Both teams would then go scoreless for nearly 4 minutes, until Tafara Gapare, as he has often done this season, broke the malaise with an emphatic dunk to extend the Terrapins’ lead to 49-46 near the midpoint of the second half.

Nebraska would counter with back-to-back threes to tie the game, and briefly take a 55-54 lead with a Ahron Ulis free throw with just under 9 minutes remaining. 

Behind seven from Rice, Maryland mounted a 10-0 run and a double-digit lead. Nebraska erased it with its run to tie the game before Gillespie’s layup and Maryland’s defense in the final minute helped it hold on.

After playing three of their last four games at home, and four games in nine days, the Terrapins head on the road for two straight, starting Thursday at Illinois.

“I knew this January was gonna be really tough, and getting them to understand it was probably my biggest challenge, is that sometimes your schedule - I’ve said this for as long as I’ve been a coach — sometimes your schedule will dictate how you play,” Willard said, “and you cannot let your schedule affect how you get better and what your goal is overall.”