Box Score

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Behind 20 second-half points from center Jordan Williams, the host Maryland Terrapins overcame a first-half deficit to defeat the Elon Phoenix, 76-57, in non-conference men’s basketball action from the Comcast Center on Friday night. Williams finished with a game-high 24 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks as the Terps improved to 5-2 on the season. Elon (2-3) rookie Jack Isenbarger had another impressive night, scoring 20+ for the third time in five games to finish with a team-high 23 points.

It was very much a tale of two halves as Elon led by as many as 11 in the opening stanza and took a 34-31 advantage into the locker room. Maryland quickly turned the tide in the final period, using its low post presence to frustrate the visitors. The Terps outscored Elon 34-10 in the paint in the last 20 minutes and were effective on the glass, finishing with a 13-2 edge in second-chance points.

“We are definitely improving and tonight was our longest stretch of competitive toughness,” said Elon head coach Matt Matheny. “I told the guys that we were tough for 25 minutes tonight but we seek 40. To go as long as we did against a physical Maryland team in this kind of venue, we can certainly draw positives from that.”

Sophomore Roger Dugas added 13 points, 11 in the first half, and pulled down a career-high nine rebounds. Senior forward Scott Grable posted eight boards for the Phoenix. Isenbarger had a solid all around game with six rebounds and three assists to go with his 23 points.

Elon played a strong first half of basketball as an Isenbarger three-pointer put the Phoenix ahead 20-9 with 10:24 to play. The rookie scored nine of Elon’s first 20 points. The Terrapins turned the ball over six times during that span and had a total of 10 miscues in the opening period.

A brief 7-2 spurt by the Terps put them within four, 24-20, with 6:11 showing on the clock. Elon answered and a Sebastian Koch triple put the Phoenix back up seven, 29-22, with 3:11 to play. Maryland would manage to close the gap to as few as two before Elon took a 34-31 lead into the break.

Maryland scored the first five points of the second half to take its first lead since the opening minute of the contest, 36-34. Isenbarger quieted the crowd with a long ball at 16:59 to put Elon back on top, 37-36. Unfortunately, that would be Elon’s final advantage of the evening as the Terrapins outscored the Phoenix 14-2 over the next five minutes to go ahead 50-39.

Elon managed to trim the lead to seven on two occasions, but Williams continued to work the lane, scoring nine consecutive Maryland points during one stretch as the Terrapins capitalized on poor Phoenix shooting and closed out the win.

After shooting above 40 percent in the first half, Elon only managed to knock down 9-of-36 (25 percent) in the last 20 minutes. The Phoenix also struggled to get to the line, attempting only seven free throws compared to 22 by Maryland. The Terrapins also played a much cleaner game in the second half, turning the ball over only three times.

Elon will move into Southern Conference action this week as the Phoenix travel to Greenville, S.C. for a battle with the Furman Paladins on Wednesday, December 1 at 7 p.m. Elon is looking for back-to-back victories in Timmons Arena after a win last season.