On the other end after the miss, Mitchell committed an ill-advised foul of Kyle Wiltjer (team-high 19 points), who drilled both of his free throws to put the Wildcats up by four points. But Alex Len, who picked a perfect occasion for a national coming-out party, came crashing into the lane, following up his own missed free throw with an easy lay-in that cut the deficit to 70-69. Jarrod Polson, who scored 10 points off the bench for the Wildcats, stepped up to drain both of his attempts.

The game’s final possession in their hands, with shooters inserted across the floor, the Terps inbounded to Pe’Shon Howard, who weaved up the court and had Jake Layman open after a bone-crushing screen, but couldn’t he couldn’t get an attempt off in time.

It was a heartbreaking end to a furious and perhaps surprising rally for Turgeon’s squad. With less than 16 minutes left in the game, Wells cocked back and whiffed on a dunk, but wound up in the secodn row of courtside seats chasing a loose ball. On the sideline, Turgeon bounded into the air in excitement and pumped his fists. James Padgett, meanwhile, drew a foul in the paint, stepped to the line and calmly drained two free throws that cut the Kentucky lead to single digits for the first time since early in the first half.

With Len resting on the bench, Layman canned a corner three-pointer that chopped the lead to 53-51 minutes later. The chants of “Let’s Go Maryland” grew louder, ricocheting throughout the arena as Seth Allen drained two three-pointers that gave the Terps their first lead since 15 minutes 23 seconds remained in the first half.

Considered by Turgeon to be timid offensively throughout his freshman season at Maryland, Len asserted himself in the post as the first half wound down, preventing the Terps’ deficit from growing larger with an array of hooks and dunks, even swishing an 18-footer from the left wing. Flashing improved strength and confidence, Len put on a show for the national audience, finishing the game with 23 points and 12 rebounds.