Just past the curtain shielding the Terrapins men’s basketball team from the court, an announced 17,950 starving fans waited. It had been 12 days since their heroes had brought them joy, eight days since the visitors from Wisconsin had brought them pain, three days since heartbreak in Minnesota.

They waited.

By 3:05 p.m. Sunday, order had been restored in Xfinity Center. The Terps played 40 minutes of spirited, sometimes angry basketball, riding a gold-clad student section to a desperately needed late-February win, 86-82.

But before any of that, before forward Jake Layman dropped 16 points on 5-for-6 shooting, before the Terps bench combined for 18 points, before the program’s first two-game losing streak since 2014 had been snapped, 15 college kids dressed in gold warm-ups approached the curtain.

With smiles on their faces and basketballs bouncing from their fingertips, they flooded through the hall in Xfinity Center. One player jumped on the back of a teammate; one player playfully tapped another in the groin.

No one likes to lose. I despise losing pickup games of 3-on-3 myself. But the difference is no one is tweeting about me when my shot is off. No one questions my motivation, heart or talent.

Pressure — sometimes it’ll knock you down, other times it’ll lift you up. Over the past week, it seemed that pressure had held a firm grasp on these Terps, suffocating their joy on the court.

But Sunday, before they stepped onto the court, the Terps looked relaxed. They huddled around assistant coach Bino Ranson and listened to his speech for a few moments.

They converged once more, placing their fists together.

“Let’s hoop!” they shouted. They peeled back the curtain. It was time to play basketball.

The Wolverines threatened late and never quite went away. But the Terps withstood each blow, and had enough firepower to pull out the much-needed win.

Guard Melo Trimble: C+

Michigan coach John Beilein attributed his team’s loss to the sophomore’s ability to get to the line — Trimble shot 7-for-8 from the charity stripe — but Trimble was far from his best. He missed seven shots and had seven turnovers and only one assist. He was better than he was against Minnesota, but he still didn’t play near his potential.

Guard Rasheed Sulaimon: B-

Three days after scoring a career-high 28 points in the Minnesota loss, Sulaimon was quiet from the floor. He shot 3-for-5 for eight points and four assists. He did draw a key offensive charge with 18 seconds left, though.

Forward Jake Layman: A-

It’s a crime the Terps didn’t look for Layman more down the stretch, as the senior converted his first five attempts. He came out with energy, too, knocking down an early 3-pointer before converting a steal and score less than five minutes into the tilt. You’ll rarely see a more efficient 16-point game.

Forward Robert Carter Jr.: A-

Carter was dreadful against Minnesota, going 3-for-12 from the floor. It was a different story Sunday. He led the Terps with 17 points on 13 shots — three misses were from long range — hauled down six boards and blocked two shots. He was constantly active around the rim and cleaned up a couple missed shots for layups.

Center Diamond Stone: B+

Stone went to work inside in the first half, scoring a team-high 10 points. He was quieter in the second, but deserves credit for his early production. He also grabbed five rebounds.

Forward Damonte Dodd: B

Dodd electrified the Xfinity crowd with blocks on consecutive possessions in the first half. The second resulted in a shot-clock violation and elicited a fist-pump from coach Mark Turgeon. He also gobbled a miss from Stone for an and-1 to put the Terps up 63-58. Stone playfully delivered four gut punches to Dodd afterward.

Guards Jaylen Brantley: B-

Brantley sealed the game with a steal off an inbounds play, a fitting ending for a productive day. The junior college transfer played 10 quality minutes, scoring five points and notching three steals.

Guard Jared Nickens: B-

Finally, finally, finally. For the first time in five games, Nickens knocked down multiple 3-pointers. On a team filled with scorers, the sophomore’s job is simple: catch and shoot. His ability to do that makes a big difference for the Terps.