Max Klesmit scored nine of his 16 points in the game’s final minute as Wisconsin outlasted Maryland 74-70 on Tuesday in Madison, Wis.
Klesmit sank a 3-pointer with 56 seconds left that boosted the Badgers’ lead to 63-56. He subsequently went 6-for-6 on free throws to preserve Wisconsin’s second win in three games. The junior guard finished 8-for-8 from the foul line, where the Badgers made a season-high 28 free throws on 31 attempts.
Tyler Wahl’s 18 points led Wisconsin (18-9, 10-6 Big Ten), while Chucky Hepburn added 11 and AJ Storr paired 10 points with eight boards. The Badgers outrebounded the Terrapins 33-24 and held a 17-14 edge in points off turnovers.
Jahmir Young paced Maryland (14-13, 6-10) with 20 points, and Julian Reese hit for 18. Donta Scott chipped in 12 before fouling out as the Terrapins lost for the fifth time in six games.
Wisconsin led for most of the first half and boosted its edge to double digits on Hepburn’s corner 3-pointer that made it 42-32 with 17:17 left in the second half.
Maryland hung around by working the ball inside to Reese and Scott, who helped the Terrapins get within 53-48 with just 7:37 left.
Steven Crowl’s layup on the next possession boosted the Badgers’ lead to seven.
A Storr layup was the only field goal by either team during a stretch of nearly six minutes that Maryland weathered by hitting six free throws. The Terrapins finished 17-for-23 from the line, led by Young’s 7-for-7 performance.
DeShawn Harris-Smith appeared to trim Maryland’s deficit to 58-55 but was whistled for a controversial charge that negated his driving layup at the 3:20 mark.
The Terrapins cut the gap to 60-56 with 1:31 to go on Young’s layup, which ended Maryland’s 6:06 field-goal drought. Klesmit then buried his trey over Harris-Smith from the top of the key to give Wisconsin a seven-point cushion.
Maryland three times pulled within a possession in the final 16 seconds, getting as close as 72-70 on Jamie Kaiser Jr.’s 3-pointer with two ticks to play, but Klesmit tacked on two more free throws to seal the win.
Each team had two runs of at least six straight points in the first half, which ended with the Badgers ahead 37-29.
–Field Level Media
