No. 4 Seed Terps Fall To No. 1 Seed Florida In Sweet 16, 87-71

SAN FRANCISCO – No. 4 seed Maryland men’s basketball was defeated by No. 1 seed Florida, 87-71, in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 at Chase Center on Thursday. The Terps conclude their reason having played in its first Sweet 16 in nine years. 

No. 11 ranked Maryland also finished its season with a 27-9 record, the most wins for the program since also going 27-9 in 2015-16 – the last time the Terps advanced to the Sweet 16. Before that, Maryland’s previous Sweet 16 appearances came in consecutive years – 2001, 2002, 2003 – on the way to the 2002 National Championship and 2001 Final Four.

Maryland trailed No. 3 ranked Florida, 40-38, at halftime after briefly leading before the break. However, the Gators led the entire second half, outscoring the Terps 47-33 in the final 20 minutes. The game featured seven lead changes and six instances where it was tied. The Gators advanced to the Elite Eight and improved to 33-4 overall on the season.
 
Derik Queen led the Terps in scoring with 27 points while grabbing five rebounds and recording two steals. He scored the most points by a Maryland freshman in an NCAA Tournament game since Joe Smith (29 points) in the round of 64 on March 17, 1994. He also joined Ohio State’s D’Angelo Russell as the only two Big Ten freshmen since 2008-09 to score 27+ in an NCAA Tournament game. Russell had 28 against VCU in the round of 64 on March 19, 2015.  
 
Queen became the program’s all-time freshman scoring and rebounding leader. With 594 points this season, he passed Melo Trimble (568 points in 2014-15) and Joe Smith (582 from 1993-94). With 323 boards, he passed Smith (322) and tied Buck Williams.

Ja’Kobi Gillespie scored 17 points on 3-of-7 shooting from three, becoming the first Maryland player to record multiple made threes in each of his first three NCAA Tournament games. He also recorded two steals. The junior has eight steals through the three games, giving him the most of any Terp through three NCAA Tournament games in program history. He was even the first Big Ten player all-time to record multiple made threes and steals in his first three career NCAA Tournament games.
 
Julian Reese added 12 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals. He ends his career ranking second on Maryland’s all-time rebounds list (1,014), eighth on Maryland’s all-time blocked shots (179) and 20th all-time in program history for scoring (1,488). The senior is the only player in program history to reach 1,400 points and 1,000 rebounds. There are 14 other active players with 1000+ career rebounds. However, Reese is the only one to do it in the Big Ten. He’s the seventh Big Ten player this century with 1000+ career rebounds.

Rodney Rice rounded out double-digit scorers with 12 points on 2-of-5 shooting from three. He added four rebounds, two assists and a steal.  
 
In addition to the career marks set by Queen and Reese, the Terps recorded their best 3-point shooting season in program history as a team. With six made in the game, they made the most 3-point field goals ever (292), surpassing 272 threes made during the 2016-17 season. Gillespie (87), Rice (80) and Selton Miguel (75) rank fourth, sixth and seventh, respectively, on the single-season 3-pointers made list. 

Maryland forced 17 turnovers, including 12 steals. It forced its most turnovers in an NCAA Tournament game since recording 19 against Michigan State in the round of 32 on March 21, 2010. This was the first time that any Big Ten team had five or more players record multiple steals in an NCAA Tournament game. 

This was the 31st all-time appearance for Maryland in the NCAA Tournament. The bid marked Maryland’s seventh appearance in the last nine applicable years (2020 canceled due to COVID-19). The Terps are now 46-30 overall record in the dance.