Marquette hands Maryland men's basketball a tough loss in front of home fans
Maryland Men's Basketball vs. No. 15 Marquette at Xfinity Center Arena in College Park, MD (Courtesy of University of Maryland Athletics)
Kam Jones had 28 points, leading No.15 Marquette University to a 78-74 victory over Maryland men’s basketball at Xfinity Center on Friday despite double digit points from both Derik Queen and Ja’Kobi Gillespie.
Near the end of the game, Maryland fans complained about missed foul calls and two crucial missed free throws ultimately leading to the Marquette victory.
Marquette got off to a slow start in the first half but kept it close, largely because of Kam Jones, who was the star for Marquette, scoring 10 points in 14 minutes in the first half.
Marquette’s head coach Shaka Smart had nothing but praise for Jones.
“I mean that to me, he's as good as anybody but I'm also very, very hard on him, and I think he can play much better,” Smart said.
Marquette came out of halftime down 34-30 but Jones’ form continued in the second half. He was instrumental in Marquette taking and holding on to the lead, finishing the game with 28 points, four rebounds and one assist.
In the first half, Maryland was two-for-eight from the three-point line. Maryland head coach Kevin Willard chalked that performance up to nerves.
“Getting used to playing in a building that they hadn't seen yet was a little bit, I think, new,” said Willard. “So I think as much as they helped us defensively in the first half, it kind of gave us a little bit of nerves on the offensive end.”
However, Gillespie got off to a hot start scoring four of Maryland’s first six points, helping them take a 6-2 lead early in the first half.
Gillespie continued to shine in the first half for the Terrapins.
Coming off a game where he scored 12 points against Florida A&M, Gillespie scored 14 crucial points in 17 minutes in the first half. He ended the game with 24 points.
Gillespie has been an important pickup for Maryland this season after spending two seasons at Belmont University, where he earned the nickname “Cheat Code,” for averaging 17.2 points per game last year.
Queen was also crucial in the paint for the Terrapins in the first half, shooting five for six from the field. He ended the game with 24 points, seven rebounds and three assists.
Queen is one of the only two true freshmen on Maryland’s roster this year and is proving to be instrumental to the Terrapin’s success. He became the second college basketball player to have at least 20 points and 20 rebounds in their freshman debut.
Maryland will take on Villanova University, another Big East opponent, this weekend.