NCAA Tournament 2017, Maryland vs Xavier: Highlights, score and recap

Who walked out a winner during the NCAA Tournament game between Maryland and Xavier?

No. 6 Maryland and No. 11 Xavier stepped into a West Region game to face one another on Thursday night. The winner would advance to the next stage of the NCAA Tournament and be one step closer to their goal.

The first half saw things stay close between the Terrapins and Musketeers, finishing at 36-35, in favor of the former. 3-point shooting helped Chris Mack’s team, including help off the bench to keep them steady with Melo Trimble and Co.

In the second half, Trevon Bluiett broke out with eight points before the midway point. He struggled in the first 20 minutes, and at one point, it had Xavier up, 55-50.

With eight minutes to go, Xavier had a 61-52 lead. Sean O’Mara was leading the way with 15 points off the bench, as the team shot over 51 percent. Maryland struggled to get good shots and couldn’t capitalize on the long ball, which them throughout the game.

While Bluiett had a solid performance, he committed his fourth foul with just four minutes to go, putting his status and a key cog of the team in jeopardy. It came with a six-point lead, too. However, it didn’t matter much because Maryland struggled to get anything going on offense.

In the final minutes, Xavier closed things out after being fouled to go to the free throw line. They hit most of their shots at the charity stripe and extended the lead to over 10 points. The final score would be Xavier winning, 76-65.

Three Stars

1. Trevon Bluiett, Xavier – Bluiett led the way with 21 points, a game high.
2. Kevin Huerter, Maryland – Despite the loss, Huerter turned in a solid performance for the Terrapins, having 19 points, five assists and four rebounds.
3. Sean O’Mara, Xavier – O’Mara had a big game off the bench for Xavier with 18 points and seven rebounds.

Highlights

https://twitter.com/FanSportsClips/status/842511435670282240

What’s Next?

With Xavier’s win, they will move on to the next round of the NCAA Tournament, facing the winner of Florida State vs. Florida Gulf Coast. As for Maryland, they are headed home and will have to wait for the 2017-18 college basketball season.