Michigan
22-3; 12-3
Maryland
19-6; 10-5
Wolverines Defeat No. 24 Maryland Behind Matthews, Defense
2/16/2019 4:32:00 PM | Men's Basketball
» Charles Matthews led the Wolverines with 14 points while grabbing six rebounds and adding one assist.
» Zavier Simpson dished out eight assists.
» The Wolverines earned their sixth victory over a ranked opponent this season with their win over No. 24 Maryland.
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Crisler Center)
Score: #6 Michigan 65, #24 Maryland 52
Records: U-M (23-3, 12-3 B1G), Maryland (19-7, 10-5 B1G)
Next U-M Event: Thursday, Feb. 21 – at Minnesota (Minneapolis, Minn.), 6 p.m. CST (TV: ESPN)
• Watch: Coach Beilein Postgame Press Conference
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Senior Charles Matthews led the Wolverines with 14 points and six rebounds, and the defense caused 16 Terrapins turnovers to propel the No. 6-ranked University of Michigan men's basketball team to a 65-52 win over No. 24 Maryland on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 16) at Crisler Center. The victory was Michigan's sixth over a ranked opponent and kept U-M undefeated at home.
In addition to Matthews' 14 points, freshman Ignas Brazdeikis added 13 points and junior Zavier Simpson scored 12. Simpson was the floor general for the Wolverines, dishing out eight assists.
On the boards, Matthews' six were followed closely by Simpson and Brazdeikis, who each grabbed five. Junior Jon Teske blocked three shots. As a team, the Wolverines forced 16 Maryland turnovers to notch their 20th game this season in which they have forced 10 or more.
The Wolverine offense got started early with a triple from Simpson less than a minute into the game. Then, three possessions later, he assisted on a Brazdeikis three from the corner. Matthews added a pair of buckets to help Michigan establish an early 10-2 lead.
Coming out of the first media timeout at the 15:32 mark, Michigan kept its foot on the gas. Two quick layups from Matthews and Brazdeikis forced Maryland to call a timeout just 52 seconds after the media stoppage. Michigan led, 14-2, just 5:20 into the game.
Maryland cut the lead to 10 points, 16-6, with 11:37 to play in the first half, before Isaiah Livers connected on a corner triple. Following that, a Simpson steal at midcourt led to a Matthews dunk on the other end to push the lead to 15 (21-6) with 9:35 to go in the half.
With under five minutes left in the half, Maryland began to find its stride on offense. Aaron Wiggins connected on two threes in as many possessions to cut the lead to single digits, 25-16, with 3:39 remaining.
After a Livers pull-up jump shot extended the lead back to 11, two made Maryland free throws sent Michigan into the locker room leading, 27-18.
Matthews and Livers paced the offense in the opening half, scoring eight and seven points, respectively. Brazdeikis led the way on the glass, pulling down a team-high five.
The second-half scoring began with two made free throws by Poole, followed quickly by dunks from Matthews and Teske.
Two straight Maryland possessions that ended in Anthony Cowan threes cut the Michigan lead to seven, 33-26. Brazdeikis responded with a three-pointer to push the lead back to double digits, 36-26, with 16:50 left to play.
A Bruno Fernando layup cut the Michigan lead to eight (38-30) with 15:35 left on the clock and ignited an 11-4 Terrapin run that shaved the Wolverines lead to three, 42-39, with 10:21 remaining. Two possessions later, Poole slashed the lane and converted a contested layup, rejuvenating the crowd.
A defensive stop and rebound by Livers led to Simpson connecting from distance to rile the Crisler Arena crowd and forced a Maryland timeout. Michigan led, 47-39, with under nine minutes remaining in the game.
With less than five minutes to play and Michigan holding a six-point lead, Simpson orchestrated two straight possessions that ended in Teske dunks. Teske followed that up with a three-pointer from the top of the arc to push the Michigan lead to 11, 57-46.
With under two minutes remaining, Maryland began to apply full-court pressure and sent Simpson to the line, where he made both free throws.
The Wolverines will hit the road, traveling to Minneapolis, Minnesota, for a Big Ten Conference game against the Golden Gophers on Thursday (Feb. 21). Tipoff is slated for 6 p.m. CST, and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.
