/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/48627387/usa-today-9073304.0.jpg)
Maryland men's basketball couldn't keep Michigan State off the offensive glass, and the Spartans handed the Terps their second conference loss by a score of 74-65 on Saturday night.
The No. 7 Terps kept it close late, as Diamond Stone sunk two free throws in the last minute to bring Michigan State's lead down to three points, but Matt Costello brought down the Spartans' 17th offensive rebound of the day to give his team another possession and seal the win. Maryland is now 17-3, and 6-2 in Big Ten play.
After Travis Trice carried the Spartans when they played the Terps last season, Bryn Forbes equaled his performance with 25 points. Denzel Valentine almost had a triple-double, registering 19 points, 14 rebounds and 8 assists on the night. The No. 11 Spartans actually shot worse than the Terps, but benefitted from 13 second-chance points and 18 fast-break points. Michigan State out-hustled Maryland's defenders down the floor several times.
Melo Trimble was Maryland's leading scorer for the second straight game with 24 points. He led a relatively stagnant offense that often struggled to get points inside. The Terps settled for a lot of contested 3-pointers, and only went 8-of-27 from downtown.
After trailing by 6 points at halftime, Maryland took a 1-point lead with 16:49 left in the game, and it was back-and-forth for a while, as teams again knotted the score at 53 with 10 minutes remaining.
The game was a brutal slugfest from the start, as Maryland made one of its first seven shots. The Terps shot two percentage points better than the Spartans in the first half, but 11 first-half offensive rebounds helped Michigan State take a 35-29 lead into halftime. Without Melo Trimble, the Terps may very well have been out of it early.
Instead, the Terps kept it close in the second half, but didn't have enough to stick with the Spartans late.
Three things to know
1. Melo Trimble carried Maryland. After a quiet few games, the Terps' star guard had more points than the rest of his teammates combined at halftime. He's been more of a distributor than he was last season, but this game was another reminder that he can turn it on when his team needs him. He led the way with 24 points.
2. Rebounding was again an issue. The glass has been an area of glaring concern for Maryland of late, and the Terps topped their season-worst effort against Northwestern by allowing 17 offensive rebounds. The Terps are one of the biggest teams in the nation, but they continue to allow other teams to get the best of them down low.
3. Maryland's offense didn't look good. Michigan State will do this to you, as the Terps saw firsthand last season, when they led 17-14 at halftime of the teams' first meeting last season. Maryland didn't get many easy looks throughout the game, as the Spartans' defense was fairly suffocating both inside and on the perimeter.