Freshman Felix Okpara had 12 points and 12 rebounds for his second career double-double and five other Ohio State players scored in double figures as the Buckeyes upset No. 21 Maryland 73-62 on Wednesday in Columbus, Ohio.
The Buckeyes (13-17, 5-14 Big Ten) won their second straight after a nine-game losing streak and a stretch of 14 losses in 15 games.
Justice Sueing scored 16 points for Ohio State, which went 20 of 20 from the free-throw line.
Brice Sensabaugh had 12 points, Isaac Likekele 11 and Bruce Thornton and Sean McNeil 10 apiece in the win.
Maryland (20-10, 11-8) continued its perplexing season. In Big Ten play, the Terrapins went 10-0 at home but are 1-8 on the road.
Julian Reese had 17 points and 12 rebounds while Donald Carey scored 14 for Maryland. The Terrapins’ leading scorer on the season, Jahmir Young, had nine points, seven below his average, after shooting 4 of 13 from the field.
With the Buckeyes up 60-52 with six minutes to go, Ohio State came out of a timeout and got a second-chance bucket by Sueing followed by an Okpara block that led to a Sensabaugh jumper to make it a 12-point lead.
Two possession later, Sueing canned a 3-pointer to make it 67-52 before Carey reeled off eight straight points, but the Buckeyes closed out the game at the foul line. Ohio State went 6 of 6 at the line in the final 1:10.
Maryland entered the game as one of the hottest teams in the conference, having won eight of 10, including victories against then-No. 21 Indiana, then-No. 3 Purdue and then-No. 21 Northwestern.
Ohio State raced to a 14-4 lead and held off Maryland for a 35-29 halftime lead, paced by seniors McNeil and Likekele in their final home game.
McNeil scored 10 points on 3-for-3 shooting, including 2-for-2 success on 3-point attempts. Likekele, who was averaging 3.8 points, had nine points before the break. He made all four field-goal attempts, and he and McNeil were a combined 3-for-3 on free throws.
The regular season ends this weekend with Ohio State at Michigan State on Saturday before the Terrapins play at Penn State on Sunday.
–Field Level Media