It would be hard to find another Big Ten men's basketball coach campaigning harder for fan support than Ben Johnson did after the Gophers' victory Thursday at Michigan.
Gophers rally in second half, beat Maryland 65-62 for seventh consecutive victory
The Gophers surged after halftime to end their 10-game losing streak to the Terrapins.
January 8, 2024 at 5:22AM
Johnson didn't mind begging fans to show up in force. Sure, that added pressure, but he wanted his players to handle rising to the occasion.
Despite trailing by 11 points in the first half, the Gophers delivered a seventh straight win Sunday with a 65-62 comeback victory over Maryland in front of an announced crowd of 8,583 at Williams Arena.
"There are expectations now," Johnson said about the Gophers' first 3-1 start in the Big Ten since 2016-17. "You can talk about it, but you have to go through it."
The Gophers (12-3, 3-1 Big Ten) trailed 29-22 at halftime after forcing 15 turnovers. One of the nation's top defenses had Johnson's players flustered early, but they weren't going to be denied the program's first home victory vs. Maryland since 2016.
"This is another really good win," Johnson said. "It shows we can be competitive with a lot of teams in this league if we play our style and stick to who we are."
For the second game in a row, the Gophers had to overcome a halftime deficit, after doing so in Thursday's 73-71 victory against the Wolverines. It was again Elijah Hawkins orchestrating the comeback — this time with 10 points, nine assists and six steals.
The Gophers' 10-point deficit was erased after Hawkins nailed a deep three-pointer to beat the shot clock midway through the second half. The Howard transfer also connected with Parker Fox for a dunk that made it 55-47 Minnesota to cap a 29-11 run with 4 ½ minutes left.
The Barn cheered for Hawkins all night, just like they did before the game when he was honored for setting a school record with 17 assists last month vs. IUPUI.
"All the accolades and stuff are crazy to me," Hawkins said. "But I trust my teammates and trust in myself to play with confidence."
The Terrapins (9-6, 1-3) saw their 10-game win streak against the Gophers end despite pulling within 57-55 with less than a minute left. Jahmir Young led Maryland with 20 points, but he shot 5-for-17 from the field.
In a similar fashion to the game at Michigan, the Gophers relied on their defense by holding Maryland to 32% shooting in the second half. They also sealed the game with six consecutive free throws in the final 22 seconds, including four from Dawson Garcia, who finished with 11 points on 7-for-8 free throws.
After shooting 1-for-14 from three in the first half, the Gophers were 5-for-9 from beyond the arc after halftime. Cam Christie, Pharrel Payne and Braeden Carrington also combined for 21 points in the second half.
"Coaches are always on us about remaining aggressive," said Christie, who had a team-high 12 points. "If other teammates are off, that just means other [players] have to step up."
The U's previous home victory in the series was when Maryland was ranked No. 5 in the country during the 2015-16 season. Gophers fans weren't storming the court Sunday like they did then, but the energy in the building was palpable.
"When the fans are up and rowdy with us, that brings more energy for us," Hawkins said. "We were down early, came back and fought back when the crowd got into it."
No. 3 Michigan State scored the final four goals and rallied past top-ranked Minnesota for a 5-3 victory.
