CHICAGO — It was strange for Melo Trimble to watch Michigan State forward Branden Dawson sky through the air and throw down a slam dunk off a lob with 1:49 to play Saturday in a Big Ten semifinal game at United Center.

The alley-oop jolted the building with energy and gave the Spartans’ a six-point lead. It came after precise execution, and it proved to to be a game-defining play late in a crucial game. It was, Trimble realized, the type of play he’s used to seeing his Terrapins men’s basketball team convert.

Instead, the freshman point guard and the No. 2-seed Terps sputtered down the stretch in unfamiliar fashion Saturday afternoon while the No. 3-seed Spartans surged to a 62-58 victory and a spot in the Big Ten final at United Center.

The Terps were 11-0 in games decided by seven points or fewer entering the contest, had won eight straight games and swept their two-game regular-season series with Michigan State. But things unfolded in a different manner Saturday when the Terps’ squandered a 16-point first-half lead and failed to grab control in the game’s final minutes.

“I don’t think we were aggressive enough down the stretch like we’d normally be,” Trimble said. “When the game’s on the line, it showed today that if we wait too long, it’s going to be too late.”

Trimble poured in a game-high 22 points, but only guard Dez Wells joined him in double-figure scoring with 10, and the team shot 40 percent from the field. Early on, though, the Terps offense was clicking as well as it has all season.

Trimble hit his first five shots and scored 13 points in the first seven minutes. Wells jammed home the kind of rim-rattling dunk on which he’s built a reputation. Reserve forward Evan Smotrycz even got in on the action, drilling a pair of threes to help push the Terps’ lead to 23-7 less than nine minutes into the game.

“We started out great today making some shots,” Turgeon said. “They weren’t making shots.”

But the rhythmic offense soon fell out of sync, and the veteran Spartans climbed out of their early hole. The Terps hit their first eight shots from the field but made just three of their final 15 to close the half.

Michigan State, meanwhile, leaned on Dawson and point guard Travis Trice to trim the lead from 16 to eight by halftime.

“We were stagnant for a little bit with the lead,” guard Richaud Pack said. “We had some shots, and we just didn’t knock them down.”

Pack did get the Terps off to a good start in the second half by drilling a three on the first possession out of halftime. But after that, the Terps wouldn’t score for a span of more than seven minutes, which allowed the Spartans to piece together a 15-0 and take a 40-36 lead.

The Terps struggled to find open looks during the stretch, while Michigan State got into the lane consistently at the other end.

“When you get lay‑ups, it gives you a chance to be successful,” Turgeon said, “and they probably had seven or eight lay‑ups in the second half.”

The Terps didn’t crumple after Michigan State’s big spurt, though. Wells and Smotrycz scored seven straight points to put the team on top right after the Spartans’ string of 15 consecutive points.

But when the game streamed toward a tight finish, the Terps faltered while the Spartans delivered key baskets.

Dawson made a crucial trip to free throw line before his slam off the lob from guard Denzel Valentine, and after that, forward Matt Costello tipped in a missed free throw. Meanwhile, Smotrycz committed an intentional foul and Wells had a turnover on an important possession after Dawson’s dunk.

The Terps stumbled Saturday in a spot where they’ve typically thrived. Trimble, though, wasn’t too concerned sitting in the locker room about 20 minutes after the final buzzer.

Even if he was a bit surprised to see the Terps’ run of tight victories come to a close, Trimble figures Saturday afternoon’s result was a deviation from the norm.

He’s now looking forward to a chance to prove that when the Terps play in the NCAA tournament next week for the first time since 2010.

“It’s easy to say, ‘Oh yeah, we lost one,’” Trimble said. “But one is too many. I don’t think there will be any more close-game losses for us now that it’s tournament time.”