Maryland blows big lead against Cornell, but Len, Stoglin are clutch at the end
Early this year, when depleted Maryland was trying to get by with seven scholarship players, coach Mark Turgeon joked that games should last only 20 minutes.
That sentiment applied for different reasons Tuesday night at Comcast Center as full-strength Maryland followed its best half of basketball this season with its worst. But after blowing all but one of a 23-point lead, the Terrapins regained their composure behind their least experienced player.
In his third college game, 7-foot-1 freshman Alex Len scored eight points in the final 7 minutes, 23 seconds to rescue Maryland from embarrassment against Cornell of the Ivy League. Maryland won its seventh straight, 70-62, but not without breaking a considerable sweat before 11,395.
“It came so easy for us, we quit guarding. We showed our immaturity,” Turgeon said. “We didn’t know how to deal with success.”
After failing to score a field goal for a span of 12 minutes, 34 seconds, Maryland (10-3) needed to get baskets the hard way. Len (15 points, nine rebounds, three blocks) obliged, muscling for a pair of three-point plays and a put-back.
Sophomore guard Terrell Stoglin (14 points, four assists) added a 3-pointer with 1:46 left and Maryland was true at the free-throw line in the final 31 seconds, making six of six free throws, including four by sophomore point guard Pe’Shon Howard.
“One thing we have to shore up is our shot selection,” Turgeon said. “And our turnovers were atrocious.”
It was a shocking turn of events after Maryland scored the game’s first 16 points and rolled to a 28-5 lead behind Sean Mosley (19 points, six rebounds). The Terps were executing so crisply that 13 of their 17 first-half baskets came via assist.
“Our defense set that up. I don’t think we even ran a play. We were just pushing the ball,” Stoglin said of the Terps’ fast-break artistry, which abruptly disappeared in after intermission.
Cornell (4-9) rallied behind guards Chris Wroblewski (15 points) and Devin Cherry (14 points). As the Big Red heated up and switched defenses effectively, Maryland went stone cold. Freshman Nick Faust made one of 11 shots. Cornell whittled the deficit to one point on four occasions, but Maryland wouldn’t yield.
“We’ve figured out how to execute and win close games,” Turgeon said. “We might just have to get our tail kicked to [learn].”
