Maryland men's basketball dominates Ohio State in Big Ten Conference opener

Maryland Men's Basketball vs. Ohio State in the Xfinity Center Arena (Courtesy of Maryland Athletics Department)

Maryland men’s basketball (8-1) cruises to a 83-59 win against Ohio State University (5-3) in their Big Ten Conference opener on Wednesday at Xfinity Center.

In their last matchup, Maryland lost to Ohio State by a score of 79-75 in a game that went to double overtime, but Maryland gained a quick lead this time around.

Maryland led Ohio State by a score of 50-17 at halftime. Derik Queen and Ja’Kobi Gillespie finished the half as leading scorers with 13 points.

Gillespie opened the scoring on the game’s first possession with a three-pointer. He remained consistent throughout the half but spreading the ball around and getting other players involved was how Maryland got a quick lead.

New addition to the Terps this season, Tafara Gapare, contributed an important eight points in the first half. Maryland brought Gapare to the team this season from Georgia Tech to add variety to their offense.

“It's just, for me, it's just giving him enough time to let him make a difference on the court,” Maryland men’s basketball head coach Kevin Willard said.

Willard praised Gapare saying, “he's a great kid. He's a very smart young man.

Through the first six games of the season, Gapare averaged around 2.7 points per game. In the previous two games, he scored 19 points against Bucknell University and had nine against Alcorn State University.

Showing his versatility this game, Gapare knocked down a three, scored in the paint and got to the free throw line to score eight points in the first half. He finished the game with 12 points.

Ohio State called a timeout with about 11 minutes left in the half after a Gapare dunk and a Julian Reese steal left them down 8-20.

Maryland put up this first-half lead without Queen having a stellar first 10 minutes of the game. Queen scored his first points with just under 17 minutes left in the first half and did not score again until eight minutes later.

From there, Gillespie and Queen took over the rest of the first half. They combined for 18 points in the last eight minutes.

Queen dominated the paint, getting to the free throw line three times and shooting five-for-six in the first half.

Gillespie credited their defense with helping to get the offense going, saying “I mean just defense as a team. We just guard him as a team, just stopping them and offensively I can just trust my teammates to make me involved.”

In the second half, Maryland controlled the pace, cruising to a win in their Big Ten Conference opener.

Maryland has a five-game win streak and will hope to keep that streak alive as they face a tough challenge away against No. 8 Purdue at 12 p.m. on Sunday.