ATLANTA — ATLANTA - There was a sense of desperation last night as Maryland met Georgia Tech with each team struggling to find its way in the rugged Atlantic Coast Conference. The Terps, who hadn't won on an opponent's court this season, had lost three of four, and the Yellow Jackets had lost six of seven games.
Led by Greivis Vasquez, Maryland - which played sloppily but with urgency at the finish - held off Georgia Tech, 57-56, to keep alive its flickering hopes for an NCAA tournament bid.
The Yellow Jackets missed two shots at the end that could have won it. After Lewis Clinch missed a jumper, Georgia Tech got the rebound and Iman Shumpert missed a three-pointer at the buzzer.
Vasquez scored 14 of his 19 points in the second half.
"I thought Greivis down the stretch was a great leader," Maryland coach Gary Williams said. "A game like that - on the road - it's going to be tough."
Georgia Tech, a solid rebounding team, hasn't shot above 50 percent in 13 straight games.
Maryland's instruction from its coaches had been simple: Pack inside defensively and try not to give up offensive rebounds to 6-foot-9 Gani Lawal and 6-foot-10 Alade Aminu.
Before leaving for Atlanta, coaches had written "Defensive REB" on an erasable board in the Terps' film room along with these keys to victory: "Half-court defense on Lawal" and "Play Hard!" Maryland (15-8, 4-5 ACC) did its best to follow the instructions.
The Terps packed the lane and often batted away passes intended for Lawal and Aminu inside. Lawal finished with eight points and 14 rebounds. Aminu had seven points and five boards.
"Our thing was to double-team them off the catch," said Maryland forward Dave Neal, who scored five points. "Just the fact that we came in here and stayed composed and played hard and played great defense is awesome."
Georgia Tech (10-12, 1-8), which trailed by 10 in the first half, took a 41-39 lead in the second half on a follow-up slam by Lawal.
But Vasquez wouldn't let the Yellow Jackets' lead stand for long. If the Terps seemed eager for their first road win - and they did - then Vasquez was most eager of all.
He scored in bunches.
With the Terps trailing 43-39, Vasquez scored the next six Maryland points, giving the Terps a 45-43 lead.
The Yellow Jackets trailed 55-54 when Vasquez was fouled and made both ends of a one-and-one.
