COLLEGE PARK, Md. _ The 200th victory for Mark Turgeon as coach of the Maryland men's basketball team didn't start like many of his squad's games this season.
There was no head-scratching slow start. No double-digit comeback. Instead, it was Maryland who nearly blew a 14-point lead before holding off Nebraska's second-half run.
Maryland missed the first free-throw attempt of back-to-back one-and-one opportunities in the final 30 seconds, but a last-second block by sophomore forward Jalen Smith helped No. 9 Maryland secure a 72-70 win over the Cornhuskers at Xfinity Center.
Smith (16 points, 12 rebounds), senior guard Anthony Cowan Jr. (13 points, 10 assists) and freshman forward Donta Scott (10 points, 10 rebounds) all recorded double doubles as the Terps picked up their seventh straight victory.
Maryland (20-4, 10-3 Big Ten) built a 13-point lead at halftime, with the help of a 10-0 run, and led by as many as 14 before Nebraska went on a 12-2 run to cut its deficit to two with seven minutes remaining.
After a timeout by Turgeon, Maryland reverted to a zone _ which has often been used to help the team dig out of deficits, not preserve leads _ and the Terps went on an 8-0 run to push the lead back to double digits. Sophomore guard Eric Ayala, who recorded a season-high 16 points, hit two of his four 3's during the run.
Maryland led 71-68 with 13 seconds remaining before Ayala missed the first free-throw attempt on a one-and-one. Nebraska cut the lead to one after an intentional foul by Smith.
Cowan then missed his own free throw before Smith's block on a driving layup and subsequent free throw.
Nebraska (7-17, 2-11) entered the game with a size disadvantage _ no player on the court for the Cornhuskers stood above 6 feet 9 _ and played as such, focusing on perimeter shots for much of the night. Ten of the Cornhuskers' first 15 shots came from beyond the arc, and Nebraska made just seven of their 33 attempts from long range.
The Cornhuskers were also playing without junior guard Dachon Burke Jr., the team's second-leading scorer, who did not make the trip to College Park because of the flu.
Terps freshman center Chol Marial, playing for the first time since Feb. 4 against Rutgers, added two points and two rebounds in six minutes.
