The Maryland Terrapins ended their rollercoaster season where it all began, in New York, losing to the Iowa Hawkeyes 71-60 in the semifinals of the N.I.T. tournament.
The Terps played out of sync all night and it was only their heart and determination that kept them in the game. They were ahead 4-2 at the 18:57 mark of the first half and that was their last lead of the night.
7-foot-1 center Alex Len kept the Terps in the game, scoring 16 points and grabbing nine rebounds. He also blocked six shots. Nick Faust was the only other Terrapin in double figures with 14 points.
Dez Wells, the Terps leading scorer during their late playoff surge, added nine points but was ineffective and fouled out. Maryland, at times, looked very sloppy and had 17 turnovers.
Still, with all of the struggles, the Terps were only behind 38-33 at the half after being down by nearly double digits the entire first half.
Unfortunately, they allowed the Hawkeyes to build a 10-point lead at the 16:41 mark of the second half and the Terps were reduced to trying to chip away at the lead the entire second half.
They got as close as 49-45 with 11:57 to play after a Faust three pointer, but then a lay up by Hawkeye Roy Devyn Marble increased the lead back to 11 at 56-45 and the Terps would get no closer then five points the rest of the way.
Marble led Iowa in scoring with 21 points and had a team-high nine rebounds. Eric May added 12 points for Iowa.
The Terrapins, disappointed in not making the NCAA tournament, did not hang their heads but beat Niagara, Denver and Alabama to reach the N.I.T. Final Four. They began the season with a loss to Kentucky in New York, and then went on a 13-game winning streak. They beat Duke twice and finished their season with a record of 25-13.
