It’s safe to say the odds weren’t in Maryland men’s basketball’s favor in the first half of its Feb. 7 game at Illinois. The Terps have struggled for years against ranked teams on the road, and the No. 20 Illini hadn’t lost a home conference game this season, and they came out firing to take an early 14-point lead.
But the No. 9 Terps found another gear. They slashed the lead down to two points at halftime, then took the lead early in the second period and never relinquished it. When the final buzzer sounded, Maryland had its most impressive win of the season — perhaps its most impressive win in several seasons — and was alone atop the Big Ten standings after a 75-66 victory.
The Illini, who had already squandered a 14-point lead against these Terps on Dec. 7 in College Park, Md., used a 13-0 run to take a 17-7 advantage Feb. 7. They stretched the margin to 29-15, but Maryland didn’t fold and instead started chipping away. The Terps cut it to single digits, then five, then a pair of Aaron Wiggins threes made it just 42-40 at halftime. And a 13-0 run early in the second half gave Maryland a 53-44 lead just like that. Illinois got back within one, but the Terps responded with a 10-1 run and kept their distance down the stretch.
