MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Guard Kevin Huerter remembers how frustrated he felt watching the Maryland men’s basketball team lose at Minnesota while he sat on the couch in his Clifton Park, New York, home on Feb. 18, 2016. Huerter and two other freshmen starters this season could only look on last year when the Terps allowed the Golden Gophers to win their first Big Ten game in 14 tries.
With four of Maryland’s starters leaving via graduation and the NBA Draft last offseason, Huerter hoped he and his teammates could make a difference in Maryland’s game at Minnesota on Saturday.
Not only did they play major roles, but the rookies led Maryland to victory in a hostile environment. Huerter and fellow newcomer Justin Jackson combined for 47 points to lead Maryland to an 85-78 victory at Williams Arena, marking the squad’s sixth straight win and improving to 8-0 away from Xfinity Center.
“They’re just playing with no second thought,” guard Melo Trimble said. “Just shooting the ball and playing basketball. I’m really proud of them.”
Jackson led Maryland (19-2, 7-1 Big Ten) with a career-high 28 points on 9 of 15 shooting, while Huerter scored 19 points. Guard Akeem Springs paced Minnesota (15-7, 3-6) with 23 points.
After the Terps jumped out to an 8-2 lead, the Golden Gophers went on a 19-1 run to gain a 12-point edge. As it has in some early stretches this season, the Terps offense went stagnant.
Trimble and guard Anthony Cowan, who entered as Maryland’s leading scorers, help the Terps set an aggressive style of play in most games. But with them struggling to get into the lane early on, Huerter and Jackson combined for 16 points in the first half.
Turgeon didn’t hold practice Wednesday and Thursday to fend off fatigue, but he could tell Jackson’s shot was on by the first media timeout when the sixth-year coach told the Ontario native he thought he would score 30 points. His prediction wasn’t far off.
“At the time, I was just like, ‘If I do it, I do it. If I don’t, I don’t,” Jackson said. “I’ll do whatever I have to do to help my team win. I just came in the game like any other game. Thankfully, Melo and the other guards found me. I was knocking down shots.”
Maryland responded with a 10-2 run, which Jackson — who entered Saturday shooting 40 percent from behind the arc — capped with a pair of 3-pointers. The Terps cut their deficit to as little as two, but the Golden Gophers finished the half on another run. Minnesota grabbed seven more rebounds than Maryland and scored eight more second chance points, areas the Terps have struggled in all season.
In the second half, the Terps kept chipping into Minnesota’s lead behind Huerter and Jackson’s production. By the under-12 timeout, Jackson had a game-high 19 points and made each of his five shots from the three-point line.
With 10 minutes 27 seconds remaining, guard Jared Nickens made a 3-pointer before Cowan finished a layup off a steal to tie the game at 54, prompting Turgeon to jump up, kick his feet in the air and scream “Let’s go.” About a minute-and-a-half later, Trimble finished a layup through contact to give the Terps their first lead since the opening six minutes of the contest.
While Trimble, who often leads Maryland’s comebacks, scored 13 points, he mainly worked as a facilitator, dishing nine assists and not turning the ball over. The Terps finished shooting 61 percent from the three-point line — the largest boost coming from Huerter and Jackson, who combined for 10 of 12 shooting.
“When they’re on, they’re on,” Trimble said. “It’s my job as a point guard to feed them. I did a really good job of that in the second half.”
The game went back-and-forth with multiple lead changes, but Jackson and Huerter helped Maryland close the win in the final moments. Jackson opened a two-point advantage at the 2:11 mark after finishing a layup through contact and draining the free throw. The Golden Gophers then tied the contest before Huerter sunk his fifth 3-pointer.
Huerter noticed Minnesota was collapsing defenders in the paint during pick-and-rolls, so the 6-foot-7, 190-pound swingman knew he might be open from the corner. Trimble drew four defenders as he drove to the basket, so the junior whipped a bounce pass to Huerter, who had waited almost a year for the chance to pile on those contributions. The Terps didn’t surrender their lead again.
“They don’t think about the stage,” Turgeon said. “They’re just playing basketball. They’ve done it their whole lives.”
CORRECTION: Due to a reporting error, a previous version of this story stated Maryland was 9-0 away from Xfinity Center this season. The Terps are actually 8-0 in road and neutral games. The story has been updated to reflect this correction.
