David “Diggy” Coit Drops 43 in Historic Night for Maryland, Continues Scorching Season
There are hot hands, and then there’s what David “Diggy” Coit did on Sunday in College Park.
The 5-foot-11 guard lit up XFINITY Center with a career-high 43 points in Maryland’s 96-73 win over Penn State - a performance that wasn’t just eye-popping, it was historic. Coit, who transferred to Maryland after a one-year stint at Kansas, came within a single point of tying the school’s all-time single-game scoring record, a mark that’s stood since 1978.
And he did it with the kind of rhythm and confidence that makes it look almost effortless.
“I felt hot. I felt good going into the game,” Coit said postgame. “My team always gives me that confidence.”
That confidence translated into a shooting clinic. Coit knocked down 14-of-23 from the field, including a blistering 9-of-15 from beyond the arc - tying the Maryland record for most threes in a game, originally set by Mike Jones. He added 6-of-8 from the free-throw line, dished out four assists, and turned the ball over just once in 40 minutes of action.
This wasn’t just a personal milestone - it was a moment that etched his name into the building’s history. His 43 points are now the most ever scored in a game at XFINITY Center, which has hosted some of the program’s biggest moments since opening in 2002.
But what really turned heads? Coit dropped 30 of those points in the first half alone.
To put that in perspective: no Big Ten player has scored that many in a first half in over five years. Across all of Division I this season, no one’s topped that in a single half. He outscored his own team before halftime, 30-26, helping Maryland build a 30-point lead by the break.
And this wasn’t a one-off. Coit is now the first major college player this season with multiple 40-point games.
He poured in 41 against Mount St. Mary’s back in November, also at home.
Only one other player in Maryland history - Gene Shue in 1952-53 - has had multiple 40-point outings in a season.
He also becomes the first Maryland player to post back-to-back 30-point games since Nik Caner-Medley in 2006. Coit had 30 in the Terps’ road loss to USC earlier in the week.
For a guy who averaged just 5.1 points last season at Kansas, this leap is remarkable. But it’s not entirely out of nowhere.
Before Kansas, Coit spent two seasons at Northern Illinois, where he averaged 15.5 and 20.8 points per game, respectively. The scoring chops have always been there - Maryland is just where it’s all come together.
So far this season, Coit is averaging 13.8 points on 40.4% shooting from the field and 38.4% from three. He’s hit 43 threes on 112 attempts - and he’s clearly heating up.
Maryland head coach Buzz Williams had high praise for his guard after the game.
“Coit has video-game tendencies,” Williams said. “He has an ability to score at his size that’s uncommon.
He can create space, and his ability to make shots off the dribble is rare. It was fun to watch.”
Williams also emphasized Coit’s maturity in the moment. Despite being just one point shy of the program’s single-game scoring record - and with four minutes left on the clock - Coit didn’t force the issue.
“I wasn’t chasing it,” Coit said. “If I had made my free throws, it would have been different.
But it was getting chippy, they were being physical. I just think it was smarter for me to not do that.”
Instead, he deferred to teammates and celebrated with them. When Darius Adams hit a three on Maryland’s final possession, Coit was the first to cheer him on.
“He handled it with great humility. He handled it the right way,” Williams said.
Coit’s performance also puts him in rare company. He’s just the second Big Ten player this century to record multiple 40-point games in a season - the other being Purdue’s Carsen Edwards in 2018-19. He also now holds the top two scoring performances in XFINITY Center history, surpassing not only his own previous 41-point outing, but also the 42-point games posted by Maryland women’s star Brionna Jones in 2017 and Virginia Tech’s Elizabeth Kitley in 2022.
Penn State head coach Mike Rhodes summed it up simply: “I thought he was going to have 100 points today. When he makes one, he’s hunting the next one. When good players get going early, that’s what happens.”
Maryland, now 8-10 overall and 1-6 in Big Ten play, needed this one. And they needed Coit to lead the way. He delivered - and then some.
“He’s been around the world and back,” Williams said. “His story should be told at a higher decibel level. His heart is beating for the right things.”
Right now, Coit’s not just scoring - he’s setting the tone for a Maryland team trying to find its rhythm in conference play. And if Sunday was any indication, he’s only just getting started.