Louisville took control of its game in the first half. Maryland took control of its game in the second half.
Victories on Thursday put them in the championship game of the Baha Mar Hoops Bahamas Championship tournament in Nassau. They’ll meet Saturday in a morning tipoff.
Maryland (5-1) had a late 17-3 run and outscored Richmond 54-39 in the second half of an 86-80 victory.
“We’re playing for a championship,” said Eric Ayala, who scored 20 points and grabbed a career-high nine rebounds for the Terrapins, “and that’s helping us build that winning mindset.”
Hakim Hart led Maryland with 24 points on 8-of-9 shooting for his first double-figure scoring game of the season.
He scored 17 points in the second half after the Terps trailed by as many as 12 late in the first half.
Maryland shot 35 percent in the first half and 65.4 in the second half.
“The last two and a half minutes of the first half got us back in the game and then the second half was terrific,” Terps coach Mark Turgeon said. “The effort was just off the charts. Our guys battled and we got smarter defensively.”
Louisville (4-1) trailed only once (2-0) and rolled to a 41-25 halftime lead on its way to a 72-58 victory against previously unbeaten Mississippi State.
Samuell Williamson led 10 Cardinals scorers with 15 points off the bench, Dre Davis added 12 points, Jae’Lyn Withers scored 11 and Malik Williams had 10 rebounds and eight points.
“It’s good to have depth,” Louisville acting head coach Mike Pegues said, “especially with a quick turnaround against a good Maryland team.”
Louisville held MSU to 33.3 percent shooting, including 1 of 15 on 3-pointers.
“We played really well and really hard,” Pegues said. “That’s how we should defend and rebound every night.”
The Cardinals held a 47-38 rebounding edge and had 15 offensive boards to 10 for the Bulldogs.
“We finally rebounded the ball the way a Louisville team is supposed to rebound the basketball,” Pegues said. “We did the job.”
–Field Level Media
