BROOKLYN, N.Y. — No. 13 Maryland men’s basketball overcame a dreadful first half with a huge second-half surge but didn’t make enough plays in the end in a 56-53 loss to No. 7 Tennessee on Sunday in the Basketball Hall of Fame Invitational at Barclays Center.
After trailing by as many as 21 points, the Terps pushed the Volunteers to the brink in the closing seconds. Graduate transfer guard Jahmir Young recovered a loose ball and passed to senior guard Hakim Hart, who was wide-open under the rim for a layup that cut the deficit to 55-53 with 24.6 seconds left.
After Tennessee missed a free throw with 22 seconds left, the Terps (8-2) had the chance to take their first lead since going up 2-1. Young drove into the lane and found some open space for a floater, but wasn’t able to convert. The Volunteers hit one of two free throws after a foul, giving Maryland one more chance to tie the game. Young drove down the court and got off a 3-point attempt from the top of the arc, but it sailed wide right as time expired.
Young was the only Terp to finish in double figures, scoring 18 points and adding seven assists. Senior forward Donta Scott and Hart each had nine points as Maryland struggled to score, shooting 32.7% from the field. Sophomore forward Julian Reese (St. Frances) totaled eight points and eight rebounds despite being in foul trouble throughout the afternoon.
The Volunteers (9-1) were led by guard Zakai Zeigler, who finished with 12 points.
In the premier matchup of the Basketball Hall of Fame Invitational, Maryland put together its worst offensive half of the season. The Terps shot 3-for-24 from the field while making just two of their 16 3-point attempts. Even though the Volunteers weren’t any better offensively, shooting 11-for-39, they were able to exploit Maryland’s frontcourt depth by attacking the basket and getting to the free throw line.
Despite watching shots constantly bounce off the rim, Maryland kept fighting, and in return found life in the second half. The Terps went on a 14-2 run to evaporate a daunting deficit. The Barclays Center suddenly erupted when Scott’s floater trimmed Tennessee’s lead to 45-41 with eight minutes left.
Days after Maryland suffered its first loss of the Kevin Willard era to Wisconsin in a physical matchup that featured 38 combined fouls and a handful of scoring droughts from both sides, the Terps found themselves in another slugfest.
The opening minutes indicated as much. Maryland’s first four offensive possessions featured a blocked 3-point attempt by Young, two turnovers forced by the Volunteers and Hart’s shot bouncing off the rim.
Tennessee couldn’t get anything going, either. The Volunteers missed layup after layup, using the free throw line (9-for-15) to generate their points early in the first.
When referees blew their whistle on the first media timeout of the game, Maryland trailed 5-2 with 14:43 remaining, as both teams combined to shoot 2-for-17 from the field.
After Maryland and Tennessee broke out of their huddles, only one team started making shots. The Volunteers went on a 16-3 run over six minutes, and the Terps couldn’t keep up. Tennessee kept punishing Maryland around the rim, outscoring the Terps 16-2 in the paint.
Tennessee’s physicality on defense was too much for Maryland to handle, as the Volunteers held the Terps scoreless for more than nine minutes until Young’s 3-pointer cut the deficit to 27-13 with 4:08 left in the half.
Tennessee responded by scoring seven unanswered points to take a 34-17 lead into halftime.
