CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Anthony Cowan scored a career-high 19 points and led Maryland to a 62-56 win over Illinois on Saturday.
Maryland (16-2, 4-1 Big Ten) faced a better team than the one it dominated early in the season, but a sloppy second half from the Illini allowed the Terrapins to come back and hold off the Illini in the final five minutes.
The Terrapins had a cold start, including a 3-for-13 first half from beyond the arc, but Maryland responded to shoot 43 percent from the field and 27 percent from 3-point range to make up for earlier mistakes.
Shooting wasn't the only offensive area where Maryland controlled the pace, as the Terrapin bigs held a 32-14 advantage in the paint.
Melo Trimble and Jaylen Brantley each added 12 points.
Maverick Morgan led the way for Illinois (12-6, 2-3 Big Ten) with 15 points and five rebounds. Leron Black scored 14 points and added nine rebounds.
The Illini got production from numerous different players but inconsistency in the second half, including a scoring drought that last longer than seven minutes, stalled Illinois from holding on to a lead that was as large as 11.
UP NEXT
The Fighting Illini have a pair of road games next week, at #17 Purdue on Tuesday, Jan. 17, (6 pm CT on BTN) and at Michigan on Saturday, Jan. 21, (1:15 pm CT on BTN).
ILLINOIS POSTGAME NOTES
1. Maverick Morgan led the Illini in scoring with 15 points, his fourth straight game in double-figures and the seventh time in the last eight games he's scored 10+ points. The senior big man hit 5-of-10 from the field and pulled down five rebounds.
2. Leron Black scored 14 points and pulled down nine rebounds, narrowly missing out on his second double-double of the season. Black hit a career-high two three-pointers in the game (2-of-2). He entered the game with just one careeer made three.
