COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Maryland's stars led the way Jan. 18, as the Terps defeated Northwestern, 76-67, to run their conference win streak to nine games. Jalen Smith recorded his ninth straight double-double, while Anthony Cowan scored 19 points, dished out five assists and had zero turnovers.

Watch Maryland head coach Mark Turgeon break down his team's win in the videos below or read a full transcription of his remarks.

Opening Statement:

“Really good win for us. I thought we did a lot of really nice things tonight. We shared the ball. We really passed the ball. We had 17 assists out there, we had 12 at halftime on 13 baskets. We would have had more assists. We just couldn’t make a jumper in the second half, which is kind of who we turn into sometimes. But the last seven or eight minutes our offense was terrific, our execution in our halfcourt offense was great, sharing the ball, getting to the foul line, spacing, coming out of timeouts and scoring or getting fouled. We did a lot of great things. We couldn’t get rid of them. Our ball-screen defense wasn’t good enough to start the second half. I knew it was going to come to that and we didn’t guard it well. We weren’t as prepared as we needed to be for that. And then they made a lot of big shots. They made a lot of big shots and they were playing a little bit looser. I was really proud of our guys. We could have really tightened up but we didn’t. We played with great poise. It starts with Anthony and Stix was phenomenal tonight — one rebound short of 20-20. So he was on another level. Just proud of the guys. Really good win for us. And only five turnovers, which is terrific.”

On team’s response to when Northwestern cut the lead to four point:

“I thought we played well. I mean, this team had Rutgers down 10 with five to play in their building, and Rutgers is pretty good. And so I thought we defended really well the first half and the start of the second half we weren’t very good. They had 19 points in the first eight minutes. They had 25 at halftime. So then we were good again. So I thought we responded great and I liked the way we responded when they cut it to four. I thought offensively we were terrific. I went with a lineup where our matchups were better and it really helped us and we had a stretch there where we were really good. We missed the front end of a one-and-one. We missed a layup. We made some tough shots but there could have been more. But when you’re 1-for-13 from three and probably 10 of them are wide open, it’s not going to be a 20-point win. And so it’s who we are. We didn’t panic. We figured it out and played with great poise.”

On Morsell’s growth as a player and recent play:

“It’s crazy. It used to be three or four turnovers and one assist. He’s just turned into this player who has totally bought in to what he needs to do. And they don’t guard him and he still finds a way to get in the paint and make plays for himself and make plays for everybody else. So he’s a really confident kid right now. He’s in a really good place. It’s really cool because you coach guys to watch them get better and to see what he’s done. You know, last year at this time I was like, ‘Dang, I don’t know if this is going to work.’ He kept turning the ball over, live ball turnovers. But to see where he is right now and what he’s doing, it’s really good.”

On ball movement:

“We really did it yesterday in practice. We shared the ball yesterday in practice and it was like woah this is really fun to watch. And they started that way again. It’s contagious when guys share the ball. Our point guards had zero turnovers tonight — Anthony and Eric — and that’s terrific. So we just keep doing the little things and keep getting a little bit better. When the game was on the line, I just thought our execution there at the end was really good. So it’s good to see. So just keep plugging, just keep trying to get better. There are some things that we can learn. Ball-screen defense and boxing out on defense we have to do a better job with. But we can learn from film and hopefully we do a better job come Sunday.”

On learning from the close call against Nebraska:

“I thought we were locked in. I thought we played well. We played much better than we did last week and we played with more poise and our communication was better between players and coaches and all of that type stuff. So we were much better tonight. Gotta give Northwestern a lot of credit to hang around and play the way that they did. They played really well.”

On what stands out most about Anthony Cowan Jr.:

“I just think it comes down to leadership. That’s really the difference. I think Anthony late in the year last year really learned how to play the right way and he was still a really good player before that. But there comes a point where you have to do what the team needs every position, whether it’s scoring, whether it’s passing, whether it’s defending. And he has gotten to that point now. So Anthony is all about winning. Anthony’s leadership on and off the floor is great. Tonight when we needed a big play he made big plays or got to the foul line. And he’s just constantly communicating and talking and making guys better.”

On Pat Spencer:

“One, how confident he is as a person. I talk to coach Tillman all the time. I think lacrosse and basketball are very similar. And you’ll see he’s a great passer with the ball above his head like he as the stick working. And what an athlete. I was blown away at their place. I wasn’t prepared for what kind of athlete he was gonna be because we have some really good athletes and he really stood out there. So I see why he dominated the way he did. He’s a good player. He missed some shots for us tonight but he’s a hard guard and he’s a tough kid.”

On whether he thought Jalen Smith would be this good at this point:

“He’s actually even better than I imagined this year, and even two months ago. In December, I wasn’t sure we could get to this so fast. He’s just so confident. And I was really hoping he could get to 20-20 but they made the shot there at the end. He just keeps growing. Defensively he does so much for us on the defensive end. And then offensively he really helps us space the floor. And I thought tonight he was really good around the basket, which was great to see too. We can still get a lot better before the year is over and Stix is working at it. He wants to be great.”

On Donta Scott:

“[Scott] had some silly fouls tonight, but Donta can really drive the ball. And we’re just trying to encourage him to be more of a driver. Not only to shoot it, but to pass because he can really pass. He got the first bucket of the game when he drove and he’s working really hard on his shot. And we talked about it as a team the other day. We said we have to get Donta more shots. We have to get him more open looks because he can shoot. He was kind of an afterthought for us. He was just trying to figure out my gosh we’re playing in the Big Ten. Now, he’s become a real steady player for us and a guy who I think can help Stix grow offensively for us. But his toughness is what he really brings to us. But he can score. He’s a big-time scorer. He can score off the dribble. He can score shooting threes. He’s the only one that made a three for us in the second half, so it’s great. He seems fresh and he seems in a good spot right now.”

On Ayala and Wiggins not hitting their shots:

“They didn’t panic. They didn’t let it affect their game. I think Eric got a little frustrated when he missed the layup there because that’s his move. The good thing is that we can win in double figures and those two shot the way they shot it. Aaron made a big one in the first half, kind of got us going. I just want guys to relax, have fun. I keep thinking our best basketball is still ahead of us, but we’ve played pretty well. So hopefully it is for them. But no panic out of them and our guys just continue to play with poise and they didn’t let those shots affect the rest of the game.”

On what has been different during the nine-game winning streak

“I’ll say it and it’s real simple. We’re playing with confidence, we’re making maybe a couple more shots per game, and we’re not turning the ball over. We’ve had one bad game in this stretch of turning the ball over, and it was Nebraska at home when we had 17 and it was close. If we had 17 tonight, we might have lost. So that’s really the difference. We’re not going to get caught up in ourselves because we’re at Ohio State, at Minnesota, Michigan State at home, at Rutgers, Michigan at home. And Ohio State and Michigan are back to playing the way they were playing. So we have to lock in and get better and do the best we can. But it’s nice to be on top right now.”