With every Miami slash to the hoop, every made free throw and every point chipping away at the Terrapins men’s basketball team’s lead Wednesday night, a familiar feeling of dread crept into the game.

The Terps weren’t going to be able to get the stop they needed to hold off the charging Hurricanes. The game would end similarly to close losses to Connecticut and George Washington, when one crucial defensive stop could have sent the result the other way.

While the Terps managed to hold on for a 74-71 victory thanks to guard Dez Wells’ 3-pointer with five seconds left, one thing became clear just before the second half of ACC play: They’re going only as far as their defense takes them.

The cliche “defense wins championships” is tried and true, and its application to the Terps is no different. Obviously, the Terps’ chances of winning games drastically diminish when they give up a ton of points. But they haven’t been winning games when they get into shootouts either.

When the Terps and their opponent both score more than 70 points, the Terps are 3-5, including two ugly home losses to Oregon State (90-83) and Boston (83-77). After some losses, coach Mark Turgeon has said the Terps scored enough points to win, but the onus falls on the defense to seal the result.

“Our defense is just not quite there,” Turgeon said Wednesday night.

It’s not for lack of trying, either. The Terps have employed a number of different defenses, including man-to-man, a 1-3-1 zone and a full-court press in an attempt to slow down opponents while also generating offense. Sometimes they work. Sometimes they don’t. After Notre Dame shot 58.3 percent in the first half on Jan. 15, the Terps held the Fighting Irish to 38.5 percent in the second half. But in a collapse at N.C. State just five days later, the Terps allowed the Wolfpack to shoot 56.7 percent in the second half after holding it to 22.2 percent in the first 20 minutes.

Consistency has waxed and waned.

“I thought our half-court zone was good for us in the second half,” Turgeon said after the Miami win. “I thought it was good for us. In the end, we want to play our man-to-man, but changes the [defense made were] good. But as we move forward, I think we’re going to have to keep doing that or maybe even add in another defense. … Our defensive mistakes are correctable. I’m encouraged.”

If Turgeon — who lamented his team’s defensive woes earlier this season — is starting to feel optimistic about the Terps’ play, it’s a significant positive, since the Terps’ postseason hopes are in dire straits. The Washington Post did a good job of detailing that earlier this week when it looked at teams to make the NCAA tournament with at least five nonconference losses. But the Terps are at .500 in conference play with the halfway point of ACC play coming tomorrow at Virginia Tech, which is ranked No. 203 in the latest RPI.

As the ACC season enters its second half, the Terps are in a four-way tie for sixth place with N.C State, Wake Forest and Florida State at 4-4. While Syracuse (7-0), Virginia (7-1), Pittsburgh (6-2) and Duke (6-2) appear to have gapped the field, the rest of the ACC is muddled with inconsistent teams. If the Terps find constant success on defense, they could make a move.

But with the offense boasting an array of weapons and showing the potential to post big numbers on the scoreboard, any postseason hopes are going to come down to the Terps’ defense.