Jaylen Brantley was a lightly used reserve guard during his first season as a Terrapin last year, but the season rested on his fingertips during Maryland's opening-round NCAA tournament matchup against South Dakota State. Brantley was fouled with 12 seconds remaining and sent to the free-throw line with Maryland leading, 76-74.
Brantley bricked the first free throw, and it wasn't even close. However, he settled back in to drain the second free throw and push Maryland's lead, 77-74. Brantley then iced the victory further, helping to cause a turnover (along with guard Rasheed Sulaimon) during the ensuing South Dakota State possession. Sulaimon clinched a 79-74 win by converting a breakaway layup with a second remaining.
"That was one of the best highlights of my season," Brantley said at Maryland's media day Oct. 25. "The first one, after I missed it, all I could think of was my mom just yelling at the TV like, 'You can make your free throw.' But the second one, I was just calm. I looked at Coach [Mark] Turgeon, and he was just telling me to be calm. I knocked it down and just wanted to get back on defense and try to get the stop."
