Maryland fans who poured into Madison Square Garden on Saturday afternoon had seemingly moved past last year’s disappointing loss to Wisconsin in the second round of the Big Ten tournament.
Midway through the first half against Illinois, the No. 13 Terps led by 10. With 4½ minutes remaining in the half, Maryland was still up 11 and the fans who made up the overwhelming majority of the intimate announced crowd of 7,239 were enjoying themselves.
In a New York minute, the mood and the game — an eventual 78-67 Illinois win — changed.