The University of Maryland men’s basketball won its 44th consecutive home opener after defeating Old Dominion 85-67 on Wednesday afternoon.
Terps junior guard Eric Ayala led the way with 19 points while shooting 4-4 from the three-point line. Senior Darryl Morsell tallied 12 points, eight rebounds and four assists.
“I really want to win,” Ayala said. “A lot of people counted us out and put us on a back burner. I really want to win a lot this year and that’s kind of my approach right now.”
Old Dominion was trailing 26-25 with 5:43 to go in the first half when Maryland transfer Jairus Hamilton connected on a pair of free throws before nailing a three-pointer, which extended the Terps lead to six points. Maryland would go on a 13-0 scoring run that would set up a 42-29 lead at the half.
The Terps carried a double-digit lead for the rest of the way.
Ayala buried a three-pointer with 7:21 to go in the second half that gave the Terps a 26-point lead, which was their largest of the game.
“I had a feeling Eric was going to play well,” Maryland Head Coach Mark Turgeon said after the game. “He practiced well the last two days. He hasn’t shot the ball great in practice, but you can see it coming. That was good to see.”
Maryland junior Aaron Wiggins finished with 12 and eight boards. Sophomore Donta Scott came off the bench and scored 14 points in 16 minutes of work. Hamilton and transfer Galin Smith combined to score 11 points.
Maryland sophomore big man Chol Marial made his presence felt defensively, recording two of the Terps’ three blocks.
The Terps’ next game will be on Friday against Navy. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.
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