Monday's basketball: Trimble carries Maryland
College Park, Md. — Melo Trimble took the same kind of shots he’s been firing up all season.
The difference was that almost all of them went in, and the result was a 23-point performance that carried Maryland past Jacksonville State 92-66 Monday night.
Trimble went 6-for-7 from the field, including 4 for 5 from beyond the arc, and was 7-for-7 at the foul line. His only miss of the night came with just over seven minutes left, and the junior guard followed with a 3-pointer that made it 76-58.
The sharpshooting performance followed successive outings in which Trimble went 4-for-13, 4-for-12, 4-for-8 and 2-for-4.
“It’s good to see Melo shoot it well,” coach Mark Turgeon said. “It’s amazing, when a shot goes in it makes everything look better. Melo’s been taking good shots for the most part … but a lot of shots have been rolling out. It just doesn’t feel right. But today they rolled in.”
Trimble figured it was only a matter of time until his shot found the bottom of the net.
“I had no doubt in my mind that I’d have one of these games,” he said. “I’ve been in the gym early, getting extra shots, staying after practice. I knew they were going to start falling. Just got to stick with it, stay confident.”
Trimble was so on target, Jacksonville State first-year coach Ray Harper couldn’t remember the one that clanged off the rim.
“I missed that one,” Harper said. “I must have been turned around when he missed it. He poses problems. He’s an awfully good player. You’ve got to think he’ll miss every now and then. Tonight, he didn’t. It was his night.”
Michal Cekovsky scored 15 and freshman Justin Jackson had 12 points and six rebounds for the Terrapins (11-1), who took control late in the first half and received little resistance over the final 20 minutes. Maryland had six players score in double figures for the first time since February 2013, against Wake Forest.
Jacara Cross and Greg Tucker each scored 10 points for Jacksonville State (5-6). The Gamecocks, of the Ohio Valley Conference, were outscored at the foul line 27-12 and had two players foul out.
“Foul trouble just killed us,” Harper said. “They shot (35) free throws. That’s a lot to overcome.”
Trimble scored 15 in the first half, going 5 for 5 from the field with two free throws.
The Terrapins trailed 17-14 before Trimble made a layup and a 3-pointer in a 19-3 run that turned the game around. Five different players scored in the spree, which helped provide Maryland a 42-29 lead at the break.
“They turned up the pressure a little bit,” Tucker said. “We went through a little period that we couldn’t score and that hurt us.’
Trimble opened the second half by making a pair of technical foul shots and Jackson added a 3-pointer to put the Terps up by 18.
The margin swelled to 20 points with 16 minutes left before the Gamecocks used a 14-4 run to get within 10. But that’s as close at it got in the second half.
State women
Monmouth 75, (at) Eastern Michigan 68: Sasha Dailey scored 19 and Micah Robinson 18 for the Eagles (4-6).
Top 25
Seton Hall 67, No. 16 South Carolina 64: Desi Rodriguez made a tiebreaking a layup with 11.6 seconds left, lifting Seton Hall over South Carolina in the Under Armour Reunion at Madison Square Garden.
The Pirates went ahead when Rodriguez took an inbound pass from Khadeen Carrington and drove along the baseline for the layup. PJ Dozier then missed a 3-pointer for the Gamecocks, and Myles Powell knocked down one free throw for Seton Hall (8-2).
The Pirates trailed by nine early in the second half before rallying. Carrington led Seton Hall with 21 points after missing his first five shots.
Dozier scored 20 points for South Carolina (8-1), which shot 38.6 percent and was outscored 40-30 in the final 20 minutes.
Notable
Villanova remains on top of the Associated Press college basketball poll.
The Wildcats (10-0) received 56 first-place votes from the 65-member national media panel to stay No. 1 for a second straight week.
Neither Michigan nor Michigan State are ranked for the third consecutive week.