March 8, 2015

----------------------------- 
               1   2   total 
Maryland (10) 31  33    64 
NEBRASKA (NR) 29  32    61 
----------------------------- 

Lincoln, Neb. — Shavon Shields game-tying 3-pointer in the final seconds was just off the mark, as Nebraska fell to No. 10 Maryland, 64-61, in front of a sellout crowd of 15,856 at Pinnacle Bank Arena Sunday evening.

The Huskers (13-17, 5-13 Big Ten) had the ball down three with 8.8 seconds left, and were trying to run a play for Terran Petteway, but Petteway had a double team and found Shields open in the corner, but was unable to convert, giving Maryland a hard-fought 3-point win.

Shields carried the Huskers in the second half, scoring 18 of his game-high 26 points in the second stanza while adding six rebounds and a career-high four steals. Petteway also joined Shields in double figures with 19 points and 10 rebounds for Nebraska.

With the loss, the Huskers will take on Penn State Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. central on ESPN2 and the Husker Sports Network.

Melo Trimble led Maryland (26-5, 14-4 Big Ten) with 21 points, while Dez Wells added 18 points, including a clutch jumper with 8.8 seconds left, and 12 rebounds, as the Terrapins won their seventh straight game and will be the No. 2 seed at the Big Ten Tournament.

The first half was highly competitive but never got into a good flow, as Maryland closed the half on a 7-1 run to take a 31-29 halftime lead. Both teams shot under 40 percent in the first half, but a combined 30 free throws provided much of the scoring for both teams.

The Huskers overcame an early deficit with an 8-0 run, as Terran Petteway scored six straight points for the Huskers, the last coming off a thunderous dunk off a steal from Tai Webster which put the Huskers up 13-7 with 11:31 left in the half.

Petteway had 14 first-half points along with six rebounds before picking up his third foul with 1:43 left in the half., while Trimble led Maryland with nine first-half points, including 7-of-8 from the foul line.

Maryland roared back, using a 7-2 run to pull within 15-14 after a Layman 3-pointer and from their neither team led by more than three points until baskets by Tai Webster and Walter Pitchford gave the Huskers a 28-24 lead with 3:43 left in the half.

Jared Nickens started the run with a 3-pointer and Damonte Dodd's drive with 23 seconds left in the half gave the visitors a two-point halftime lead.

Nebraska got off to a great start in the opening minutes of the second half, as Shields scored six straight points as part of a 9-0 Husker run to take a 38-32 lead on Pitchford's 3-pointer with 16:14 remaining.

Nebraska would eventually build a 48-43 lead after a Leslee Smith free throw with 10:42 left, but Maryland took over the game in the next 100 seconds. Trimble had five straight points, including a game-tying 3-pointer, as part of a decisive 10-0 spurt that gave the visitors a 53-48 lead after Jake Layman's 3-pointer with 9:03 left.

Trailing 59-53, the Huskers got a free throw from Petteway and a jumper from Shields to get within 59-56 with 3:13 remaining. The Huskers, who were done in by going 12-of-22 from the foul line in the second half, made one last run, as a 3-point play from Shields with 31 seconds left pulled the Big Red within one.

Maryland then held the ball and called timeout with 11.7 seconds left and four seconds on the shot clock. The Terrapins inbounded to Wells, who was able to hit a contested shot by Petteway with 8.8 seconds left to make it a 3-point game.