Virginia learned a tough lesson last night at University Hall and junior guard Roger Mason Jr. put it best: "The game is never secure until the buzzer goes off."
The Cavaliers (14-4, 4-4 ACC) simply could not close the deal against Maryland (16-3, 7-1 ACC). Virginia, up by nine with three minutes, 14 seconds to go, wound up on the wrong end of a 13-2 run and fell to the Terrapins, 91-87.
"If you told me before the game that we'd be up nine with 3:14, I'd be thrilled," said a not-so-thrilled Virginia coach Pete Gillen.
In a hotly contested back-and-forth game, Virginia had the largest lead of the night with only minutes left on the clock.
"We just killed ourselves," freshman guard Jermaine Harper said.
"The bottom line is we probably thought the game was over," Mason said. "We got complacent in the last few minutes."
As the Cavaliers' intensity dropped, Maryland made their move. The Terrapins' full-court press helped cut into the Cavaliers' lead.
Maryland reserve guard Drew Nicholas made his name known to all Cavalier fans as he hit two pivotal three pointers, the first of which came with a little over two minutes left on the clock and brought Maryland within four. His second shot was a 27-foot dagger in the Cavaliers' hearts cutting the Terps' deficit to just one.
Virginia junior Travis Watson was forced out-of-bounds and Maryland regained possession with 46 seconds left.
Maryland guard Juan Dixon set up on the wing, got a step on Mason and exploded to the hole. As the defense rotated, Dixon took off from 12 feet, leaned in and nailed a tough jumper to give Maryland a lead they would not relinquish.
"He made a big one at the end," said Maryland coach Gary Williams of his standout guard's game-winning shot. "When it came time, he knew what to do."
Virginia's last chance clanked off the rim, as Chris Williams could not connect on a jumper from the paint with 14 seconds left.
In addition to the heroics of Dixon and Nicholas, the Terrapins escaped the raucous University Hall courtesy of excellent free throw shooting.
"We were 25-for-26, and we needed every one," Williams said.
Unfortunately success at the charity stripe did not go both ways as several crucial Virginia misses cost them the game.
"We had the game and we let it slip away with turnovers and missed free throws," Gillen said.
Virginia certainly had the conference-leading Terrapins cornered behind strong performances from Mason and Watson. Mason led the Cavaliers with 29 points, shooting 5-for-11 from behind the arc. En route to his season-high total, the 6-foot-5 guard earned the 1,000th point of his Virginia career.
Watson made his presence known right from the start as he rebounded a J.C. Mathis miss and slammed it home to open the game. The Cavalier center finished the game with 19 points and 12 rebounds.
The game, which pitted the No. 3 team in the nation against the No. 5 team in the nation, had all the competitiveness and intensity that one would expect, including nine lead changes.
But, in the end, Virginia's collapse was something that even faithful Hooville fans could not help the Cavaliers overcome.
"It was a very hard fought game, we just didn't close the deal," Gillen said. "You have to close the deal"
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