BREAKING: Maryland v. South Dakota State NCAA March Madness Final

SPOKANE, WA — The University of Maryland Terrapins, the preseason favorites to win the Big Ten, won their opening game in the 2016 NCAA Tournament.

Maryland, the No. 5 seed in South region of March Madness NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, beat No. 12 South Dakota State 79 to 74 on Friday.

The Terps controlled much of the game, leading 34-22 at the half. Star ball handler Melo Trimble fouled out with a minute left in the game, with Maryland up 72-65, and the Jackrabbits made two free throws to make it 72-67. The last minute was a nail-biter, with South Dakota creeping within 2 points before turning the ball over.

Jake Layman finished the game tying his career-high with 27 points.

In Maryland’s path as it tries to advance to the Final Four is No. 1 Kansas and No. 2 Villanova. Kansas ended the regular season ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press poll.

Next up, the Terps will play No. 13 Hawaii Sunday, March 20. A game time and network have not yet been announced.

Hawaii upset No. 4 seed California in the first round with a 77-66 stomping.

• Here's your printable NCAA men's basketball tournament bracket.
• Here's your full NCAA men's basketball television schedule.
• Here's your updated NCAA March Madness bracket.

We’ll be updating the story. Come back to Patch for details.

Here are some of the reactions from Twitter.