Searching for its first ranked win of the 2024-25 campaign, Maryland men’s basketball had the opportunity to erase its demons from a dismal 87-60 loss against UCLA at home in 2022.

The Terps did just that, cranking up the intensity in the second half against the No. 22 Bruins to prevail at Xfinity Center, 79-61.

Here are three takeaways from the game.

Ja’Kobi Gillespie’s first-half effort was spectacular

The reason Maryland led UCLA at the half — let alone was in the game — was because Ja’Kobi Gillespie took it upon himself to propel the Terps’ offense.

Gillespie had an overall pedestrian West Coast road trip, scoring a season-low one point against Washington before notching 16 against No. 9 Oregon. But the ever-aggressive guard matched his scoring output against the Ducks at home versus UCLA — in just 20 minutes of play.

Gillespie was once again Maryland’s primary ball handler, and assumed much of the shot-making duties in the opening half. He had 10 attempts from the field, double that of the next closest player, Derik Queen. While the Terps were keen on trying to find their bigs for buckets inside early — they had 20 paint points in the first half compared to the Bruins’ 14 — eventually, the visitors put an emphasis on their interior defense.

Gillespie was the main benefactor, becoming increasingly ball-dominant and continuously running pick-and-rolls at the top of the 3-point line. When UCLA rolled out its drop coverage in an attempt to stifle Maryland’s inside attack, Gillespie let it fly from deep. He went 4-of-8 from downtown on the evening.

His defensive impact was also evident. Gillespie accumulated four steals on the night, including two in the second half to help Maryland pull away with quick fast-break points.

The 6-foot-1 junior had an overall quieter second half, but grabbed a huge offensive rebound and drilled a 3-pointer in succession with four minutes remaining, effectively throwing the knockout punch. He finished with a game-high 27 points to go with two rebounds and four assists.

Maryland’s defense turned it up in the second half

Maryland’s offense was by no means on fire in the second half. It picked up its scoring effort in the latter minutes, but it scored just 20 points in the first 15 minutes of the frame. It was the Terps’ defense that helped shut down any hope of a UCLA victory.

In the middle portion of the frame, the Bruins went more than four minutes without scoring a field goal, missing seven consecutive field goals. That wasn’t a product of poor offense, but rather the Terps’ airtight coverage.

For a team averaging just around 11 turnovers per game, Friday was a complete nightmare for the Bruins, who committed 21 — 10 of which came in the second half. The Terps turned those 10 turnovers into 12 points of their own.

Maryland also had six second-half steals and four blocks, while UCLA had no second-half rejections. One of the Terps’ blocks was an emphatic Julian Reese swat on Bruins star Tyler Bilodeau, sending the crowd into a frenzy and injecting the team with life.

One of the reasons for Maryland’s increased defensive presence was head coach Kevin Willard’s insertion of interior size. Tafara Gapare played an impressive 14 minutes, blocking two shots of his own and helping force UCLA into perimeter shots. The Bruins went 7-of-19 from downtown on the night.

A much-needed ranked victory

Heading into the match, Maryland was No. 24 in the KenPom net rankings. It has been teetering on the precipice of being ranked for the past few weeks. But it has also been missing something important in its resume: a signature ranked win.

It came close against then-No. 15 Marquette, then-No. 8 Purdue and then-No. 9 Oregon, but late miscues and missed chances plagued the Terps in each contest.

It didn’t take a close finish to decide Maryland’s fate Friday. The home Terps had the game in hand during most of the latter portion of the second half.

It wasn’t just Maryland’s defense that propelled it to a sizable lead. It was partially due to UCLA head coach Mick Cronin being ejected from the game, granting the Terps four free throws and igniting the crowd.

Reese also helped Maryland pull away, scoring 10 second half points on 5-of-6 shooting. As of recent, he has put on far more prolific performances than he had been early in the season.

Friday night was Maryland’s first ranked win since Jan. 14, 2024, when it beat No. 14 Illinois. The Terps will have another opportunity to defeat a ranked Fighting Illini team — currently No. 13 — on Jan. 23.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. —  Three days after calling his players “soft” and “delusional” in their estimation of their abilities, Mick Cronin wasn’t around to offer a final assessment Friday night.

The UCLA coach was in the locker room, having been ejected with five minutes and 14 seconds left after receiving two rapid-fire technical fouls with his unraveling team down by nine points.

It wasn’t the final indignity for his team. Far from it.

UCLA couldn’t get out of its own way inside the Xfinity Center, the No. 22 Bruins stumbling to a 79-61 loss to Maryland that represented a season-worst third consecutive defeat.

Being soft wasn’t the primary problem on this night. Holding on to the ball or throwing a pass without it being stolen were the big challenges confronting the Bruins.

UCLA committed 21 turnovers, tying its worst showing of the season, while getting outmuscled by another team. If this was a crossroads, then the Bruins (11-5 overall, 2-3 Big Ten) certainly took the wrong turn.

Forward Tyler Bilodeau scored 18 points and guard Trent Perry added 10 off the bench, becoming the only Bruins to reach double figures on a night the team shot 41.5% to Maryland’s 54%. Ja’Kobi Gillespie led the Terrapins (12-4, 2-3) with 27 points.

In need of a confidence boost, UCLA’s Dylan Andrews followed a pull-up jumper with a tough turnaround baseline jumper to pull his team within 53-47 with 12:36 left.

But a flurry of turnovers followed and an irate Cronin was quickly tossed after apparently voicing his displeasure with the referees.

It was only a little more than two years ago that UCLA came here and bludgeoned the Terrapins, leading by as many as 30 points in the first half of a runaway victory. That sort of showing felt like a distant memory Friday.

There were some coming-of-age moments in the first half for Perry, who played with increasing confidence the longer he was in the game.

Among his highlights were a backdoor reverse layup off a pass from Skyy Clark, a steal of a cross-court pass and an offensive rebound that he followed with a driving layup. Perry’s seven points by halftime were more than twice as many as the three points he had collected in the previous four Big Ten games while looking shaky during his brief stints on the court.

UCLA’s 40-36 halftime deficit could have been considered something of a victory for the Bruins considering they committed 11 turnovers — several while having the ball stripped — and allowed Maryland to shoot 51.7%.

There was nothing worthwhile left to come for the Bruins.

WASHINGTON – Macy’s is closing more than 60 stores this year as part of a comprehensive strategy to revive its struggling business, the department store said, and several of them are in Maryland and Virginia.

In what the company refers to as its “Bold New Chapter” strategy,  Macy’s said in a statement on Thursday that the closures are designed to “return the company to sustainable, profitable sales growth.”

Overall, Macy’s said it plans to close approximately 150 “underproductive stores” through 2026. Meanwhile, it will invest in 350 existing stores, with plans to add more salespeople to fitting areas and shoe departments, and adding more visual displays like mannequins. 

Which Maryland Macy’s stores are closing?

Security Square 159 6901 Security Blvd Ste 871. Baltimore, MD 21244

Harford Mall 60 600 Baltimore Pike, Bel Air, MD 21014

Which Virginia Macy’s stores are closing?

Southpark Mall 214 170 Southpark Cir, Colonial Heights, VA 23834

Click here for the FULL LIST of Macy’s stores that are closing:

All Macy’s Store Closures

Arizona

• Superstition Springs Center – 6535 E SOUTHERN AVE MESA AZ

California 

• Broadway Plaza – 750 W 7TH ST LOS ANGELES CA
• Hillsdale Furniture – 2838 SOUTH EL CAMINO REAL SAN MATEO CA
• Sunrise Malle – 6000 SUNRISE MALL CITRUS HEIGHTS CA
• Westminster Mall – 300 WESTMINSTER MALL WESTMINSTER CA
• NewPark Mall – 200 NEWPARK MALL NEWARK CA
• Mission Valley Home – 1555 CAMINO DE LA REINA SAN DIEGO CA
• Otay Ranch Town Center – 2015 BIRCH RD STE 2 CHULA VISTA CA
• Village at Corte Madera – 1400 REDWOOD HWY CORTE MADERA CA
• Downtown Plaza – 414 K ST SACRAMENTO CA

Colorado

• Northfield Stapleton – 8298 E NORTHFIELD BLVD DENVER CO

Florida

• Boynton Beach Mall – 801 N CONGRESS AVE STE 100 BOYNTON BEACH FL
• Ft Lauderdale Furniture – 4501 NORTH FEDERAL HIGHWAY FORT LAUDERDALE FL
• Pembroke Furniture – 13640 PINES BLVD PEMBROKE PINES FL
• South Dade Furniture – 13251 SOUTH DIXIE HIGHWAY MIAMI FL
• West Shore Plaza – 298 WESTSHORE PLZ TAMPA FL
• Altamonte Furniture – 820 W TOWN PKWY ALTAMONTE SPGS FL
• Southgate – 3501 S TAMIAMI TRL STE 600 SARASOTA FL

Georgia

• Gwinnett Furniture – 3360 VENTURE PARKWAY DULUTH GA
• Gwinnett Place – 2100 PLEASANT HILL RD STE 2318 DULUTH GA
• Johns Creek Town Center – 3630 PEACHTREE PARKWAY SUWANEE GA

Idaho

• Silver Lake Mall – 200 W HANLEY AVE STE 200-4 COEUR D’ALENE ID

Illinois

• White Oaks Mall 646 104 WHITE OAKS MALL SPRINGFIELD IL

Louisiana

• Acadiana Mall – 5733 JOHNSTON ST STE 2098 LAFAYETTE LA

Massachusetts

• Independence Mall – 101 KINGSTON COLLECTION WAY STE 1 KINGSTON MA

Maryland

• Security Square – 6901 SECURITY BLVD STE 871 BALTIMORE MD
• Harford Malle – 600 BALTIMORE PIKE BEL AIR MD

Michigan

• Grand Traverse Mall – 3400 S AIRPORT RD W TRAVERSE CITY MI
• Lakeside Malle – 14200 LAKESIDE CIR STERLING HGHTS MI
• Oakland Mall – 500 W 14 MILE RD TROY MI
• Genesee Valley Center – 4600 MILLER RD FLINT MI

Minnesota

• Maplewood Mall – 3001 WHITE BEAR AVE N STE 2035 MAPLEWOOD MN
• Burnsville Center – 14251 BURNHAVEN DR BURNSVILLE MN

Missouri

• Metro North Mall – 400 NW BARRY RD STE 150 KANSAS CITY MO
• South County Mall – 10 S COUNTY CENTER WAY SAINT LOUIS MO

New Jersey

• Essex Green Shopping Center – 459 PROSPECT AVENUE WEST ORANGE NJ

New York

• Lake Success – 1550 UNION TURNPIKE NEW HYDE PARK NY
• Melville Mall – 834 WALT WHITMAN ROAD HUNTINGTON NY
• Queens Placed – 88-01 QUEENS BLVD ELMHURST NY
• Sheepshead Bay – 2027 EMMONS AVENUE BROOKLYN NY
• Mall at Greece Ridge – 397 GREECE RIDGE CENTER ROCHESTER NY
• Sunrise Mall – 400 SUNRISE MALL MASSAPEQUA NY
• Brooklyn – 422 FULTON ST BROOKLYN NY
• Staten Island Furniture – 98 RICHMOND HILL ROAD STATEN ISLAND NY
• Fordham Place – 404 EAST FORDHAM RD BRONX NY

Ohio

• Fairfield Commons – 2727 FAIRFIELD COMMONS BLVD SPC 2 BEAVERCREEK OH
• Franklin Park – 5001 MONROE ST STE D100 TOLEDO OH

Oregon

• Streets of Tanasbourne – 2055 NE ALLIE AVE HILLSBORO OR
• Salem Center – 400 HIGH ST NE SALEM OR

Pennsylvania

• Logan Valley Mall – 5580 GOODS LN STE 2178 ALTOONA PA
• Exton Square Mall – 245 EXTON SQUARE MALL EXTON PA
• Philadelphia City Center – 1300 MARKET ST PHILADELPHIA PA
• Wyoming Valley Malle – 59 WYOMING VALLEY MALL WILKES BARRE PA

Tennessee

• Oak Court – 4545 POPLAR AVE MEMPHIS TN

Texas

• Almeda Mall – 100 ALMEDA MALL HOUSTON TX
• Fairview – 201 STACY RD FAIRVIEW TX
• Shops at Willow Bend – 6209 W PARK BLVD PLANO TX
• Southlake Town Square – 321 STATE ST SOUTHLAKE TX
• West Bend – 1751 RIVER RUN #101 FORT WORTH TX
• Highlands of Flower Mound – 6101 LONG PRAIRIE RD STE 500 FLOWER MOUND TX

Virginia

• Southpark Mall – 170 SOUTHPARK CIR COLONIAL HGHTS VA

Washington 

• South Hill Mall – 3500 S MERIDIAN STE 985 PUYALLUP WA
• Redmond Furnitureh – 15340 N.E. 24TH STREET REDMOND WA
• Kitsap Mall – 10315 SILVERDALE WAY NW SILVERDALE WA

Previously announced and closed:

• Colorado: Streets at Southglenn Furniture – 6797 SOUTH VINE STREET CENTENNIAL CO
• Florida: Boca Raton Furniture – 9339 GLADES ROAD BOCA RATON FL