Big Ten Wednesday night recap: Rutgers goes for another Scarlet upset

Another night and another chance for crazy upsets in the Big Ten. Okay, no one would be that surprised if Northwestern found a way to defeat Illinois, but Rutgers over Maryland? The Knights already had their upset! That wasn't going to stop them from giving their fellow newcomers some serious trouble.

Game of the night: Rutgers at Maryland

A few days after stunning Wisconsin in Piscataway, the Knights figured they would try their luck against Maryland on the road. They almost hit the jackpot again. Maryland fell behind 57-51 and shot just 24 percent from the field in the second half, but great defense and a strong performance from Dez Wells helped the Terrapins avoid the upset.

Wells only shot 4-for-15 from the field, but he used 7-for-8 free throw shooting to lead Maryland with 17 points. Jake Layman added 12 points and 13 boards for the Terps, who needed 15 offensive rebounds and 28 free throw attempts to make up for a surprising shooting disadvantage.

Myles Mack led everyone with 19 points and six assists, but Rutgers shot just 8-for-16 from the charity stripe in its effort to unseat a second straight Big Ten title contender.

Illinois at Northwestern

Alex Olah recorded a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds while Northwestern shot 46 percent from the field. You know how the old saying goes, though: It's hard to lose when you only turn the ball over three times. It goes something like that, and it rang true for Illinois on Wednesday night. The Illini hit just 42 percent of their shots, but 25 points from Kendrick Nunn, 19 from Aaron Cosby, and only three turnovers as a team turned out to be a recipe for success in Evanston.

Illinois survived a poor shooting night from Malcolm Hill (3-for-9) and Ahmad Starks (4-for-13) to win 72-67 in Evanston. It was the team's second win in three tries without injured star Rayvonte Rice. Meanwhile, the Wildcats continue to be one of the worst teams in the country at forcing turnovers.