COLLEGE PARK, Md. _ Almost a month ago, the then-No. 17 Maryland men's basketball team needed a career effort from sophomore forward Jalen Smith to dig itself out of a 14-point deficit at halftime and beat Northwestern on the road.
In the teams' second matchup of the season, the Baltimore native had himself another career night. Led by Smith's 22 points and career-high 19 rebounds, Maryland defeated Northwestern on Tuesday night at Xfinity Center, 76-67.
Smith also extended his double double streak to nine games, which coincides with Maryland's nine-game winning streak. It just missed being the first 20-rebound game in program history since Joe Smith recorded 21 against Texas in the 1995 NCAA tournament.
Senior guard Anthony Cowan recorded 19 points, passing Tom McMillen for eighth on the program's all-time scoring list. He also became the ninth player in Maryland history to surpass 1,800 career points.
A 12-3 run to end the first half, propelled by consecutive 3-pointers from junior guard Darryl Morsell and sophomore guards Aaron Wigins and Eric Ayala, gave Maryland (22-4, 12-3 Big Ten) a 37-25 lead at halftime.
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But for the second straight week, Maryland allowed a lowly Big Ten opponent to stay around late into the second half. Northwestern (6-19, 1-14) got as close as four in the second half, but Maryland responded.
A 6-0 run by Maryland bumped its lead back to 12 with under three minutes remaining, and the Terps held on for the nine-point win.
Freshman forward Donta Scott, who found himself in early foul trouble, recorded 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting. Morsell added 13 points and registered six assists for the second straight game.
No. 9 Penn State's loss at home to Illinois earlier in the night gives Maryland a two-game lead in the conference standings entering Saturday night's ranked matchup with No. 25 Ohio State.
