Ohio State
14-9,6-6Big Ten
#18 Maryland
17-6,7-5Big Ten
Thornton, Buckeyes Comeback to Beat No. 18 Maryland 73-70
2/6/2025 11:36:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BRUCE THORNTON. CLUTCH. ??
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) February 7, 2025
(via @BigTenNetwork)
pic.twitter.com/onWaycls5y
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Bruce Thornton. Not a whole lot more needs to be said. The Ohio State junior point guard scored 31 points as he willed the Buckeyes to a 73-70 comeback victory over No. 18 Maryland on Thursday night at Value City Arena.
Thornton scored 21 of his 31 in the second half and outscored Maryland 17-9 himself over the final seven minutes of the game. He did it all. In addition to his third 30-point game of the year, Thornton dished-out six assists, had five rebounds, a season-high three steals and blocked his fourth shot of the year. And he was the only player in the game to play all 40 minutes.
The Buckeyes, who improve to 14-9 overall and 6-6 in Big Ten play, got off to a very slow start and trailed by 17 points late in the first half. But a 6-0 run to end the half helped gather a little momentum headed to the break. Maryland (17-6, 7-5) still led by 11 with seven minutes to go and that’s when Thornton took over.
Micah Parrish also made a couple of key buckets down the stretch as he finished with 13 points and six rebounds. John Mobley Jr. finished with eight points and three assists while Evan Mahaffey was clutch off the bench, scoring six points and grabbing three rebounds.
Devin Royal had a tough night offensively, finishing with just seven points but he pulled-down a team-high 11 rebounds.
Maryland had its way in the first half, shooting 59.3 percent and outworking the Buckeyes in the paint 18-12. The mini run at the end of the half turned the tide a bit for the Buckeyes, who were fortunate to be down just 41-32 at the break.
In the second half, the Buckeyes closed to within five on a couple of occasions early, but a 9-4 Maryland run shoved the lead back out to 11 at 61-50 with 7:00 to play. Thornton then scored six consecutive points and Royal finished a dunk off an assist by Mobley Jr.
With three minutes to go, Thornton knocked down a jumper and then after a Maryland miss, Mobley Jr. found him on the wing for a three-pointer and the Buckeyes had their first lead of the game at the 2:10 mark. After two Maryland free throws, Thornton converted a three-point play to give the Buckeyes a 70-68 lead with 49 left.
Maryland scored quickly on the other to even the score and then after a timeout, Thornton banked-in a three-pointer with seven seconds to go give the Buckeyes the lead for good. After the hot start, Maryland shot just 25 percent in the second half and committed seven turnovers.
Up Next
The Buckeyes hit the road for a Super Bowl Sunday showdown at Nebraska. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. ET and the game will be televised on BTN.
