Diggy Coit Torches Penn State for 43 as Maryland Breaks Through in Big Ten Play
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Sometimes, a player just catches fire and there’s no putting it out. That was Diggy Coit on Sunday afternoon.
The Maryland guard didn’t just get hot - he stayed that way all game, pouring in a career-high 43 points in a 96-73 rout of Penn State. It was the kind of performance that leaves fans buzzing and defenders shaking their heads.
Coit’s 43 set a new Xfinity Center record and came within a single point of tying Maryland’s all-time single-game scoring mark. And the way he did it?
Efficient, confident, and relentless. He was 9-for-15 from beyond the arc, and at one point, he was outscoring Penn State by himself - 30-26 at halftime.
Maryland, winless in conference play coming into the game, needed a spark. Coit gave them a bonfire.
For Penn State, this wasn’t unfamiliar territory. Opposing guards have been lighting them up all season.
Lamar Wilkerson dropped 44 for Indiana back in December. UCLA’s Trent Perry went for 30 just days ago.
Pittsburgh’s Roman Siulepa and Boston University’s Michael McNair each had 28-point outings. And now Coit joins the list - arguably at the top.
“We’ve got to make it harder on guys like that early,” said Penn State head coach Mike Rhoades after the game. “Good players, when they get going, they’re tough to stop. And we didn’t do enough to slow him down.”
Penn State now holds the dubious distinction of being the only team in the country to allow multiple 40-point performances from opposing players this season. That’s not a stat you want to lead the nation in.
The loss was Penn State’s fifth straight and eighth in their last nine games. They’re now 9-9 overall and 0-7 in Big Ten play. Maryland, meanwhile, finally found some footing under first-year head coach Buzz Williams, picking up its first conference win of the season in emphatic fashion.
The Terps shot lights out from deep - 18-of-34 as a team, good for 52.9%. That’s a season-high for them and another sore spot for a Penn State defense that came in ranked 323rd nationally in opponent three-point percentage. That number is only going to look worse after this one.
“He made a bunch of tough shots,” Penn State forward Josh Reed said of Coit. “But we’ve got to be better at taking away their best players. That’s something we’ve struggled with, and it hurt us again tonight.”
It wasn’t just Coit’s scoring that hurt - it was the timing. Penn State came out of halftime with some fight, ripping off a 25-5 run to cut a 30-point deficit down to 10.
But just when it looked like the Nittany Lions might flip the script, Maryland slammed the door shut with a 13-2 run of their own. The lead ballooned back over 20, and that was that.
“We’ve had pockets of good basketball,” Rhoades said. “We’ve been close in some games.
But we’re not mature enough or tough enough right now to win in this league, especially on the road. That’s on me.
I’ve got to keep helping these guys find a way to get over the hump.”
Rhoades has been quick to shoulder the blame, pointing to the team’s youth, injuries, and inconsistent execution. But he’s also made it clear that accountability is shared - and his players agree.
“It means a lot,” Reed said of Rhoades taking the heat. “But it’s on us too.
We’re the ones out there playing. We’ve got to be better.”
There have been flashes - close losses to top-ranked teams like Michigan, Purdue, and Illinois, and a second-half push against Maryland that showed some grit. But moral victories don’t count in the Big Ten standings, and Penn State is still searching for that elusive first conference win.
The road ahead doesn’t get much easier. Wisconsin, riding a four-game win streak, comes to Rec Hall on Thursday. After that, Penn State faces Northwestern, Minnesota, and Rutgers twice - games that look more manageable on paper, but nothing’s guaranteed in this league.
Still, there’s belief in the locker room. Guard Kayden Mingo summed it up simply: “It’s basketball.
You’re gonna lose some, but the same way we’re on a losing streak, we can go on a winning streak. I’ve got confidence in my teammates and coaches.”
That confidence will be tested in the coming weeks. But if Penn State wants to turn this season around, they’ll need more than belief - they’ll need to start stringing together stops, especially against the kind of scorers who’ve made a habit of torching their defense.
Coit was just the latest. If the Nittany Lions can’t find a way to clamp down, he won’t be the last.