By NOAH TRISTER AP Sports Writer COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Three days after calling his players “soft” and “delusional,” UCLA men’s basketball coach Mick Cronin was ejected during the second half of their loss to Maryland on Friday night. Cronin was ejected with 5 minutes, 11 seconds left after receiving a pair of technical fouls with his team trailing by nine points. Ja’Kobi Gillespie scored a career-high 27 points and Maryland topped No. 22 UCLA, 79-61, the Bruins’ third consecutive loss. UCLA (11-5 overall, 2-3 Big Ten) was coming off of a 19-point home loss to Michigan on Tuesday night, after which Cronin leveled his pointed words at his team. On Friday, his frustration boiled over with Maryland up by nine. After Julian Reese came up with a rebound for the Terrapins (12-4, 2-3), Cronin received two quick technical fouls and was tossed, shaking hands with Maryland coach Kevin Willard on the way out. Gillespie made all four of the resulting free throws, and Reese completed the six-point possession with a layup to make it 66-51. In the final 4:01, Gillespie and Selton Miguel drained 3-pointers as the Terrapins turned it into a runaway. Maryland led 40-36 at halftime and then began the second half with Rodney Rice’s 3-pointer and Reese’s layup. There was plenty of time left, but a nine-point lead proved to be safe given the way Maryland was defending. UCLA’s Dylan Andrews hit a pull-up jumper then a turnaround baseline jumper to pull the Bruins within 53-47 with 12:36 left, but a flurry of turnovers followed and an irate Cronin was quickly tossed after apparently voicing his displeasure with the referees. Tyler Bilodeau scored 18 points and Trent Perry added 10 off the bench, the only Bruins to score in double figures on a night when the team shot 41.5% to Maryland’s 54%. The Bruins did some good work on the offensive boards, but they had a season-worst 21 turnovers. The more long-term question is whether Cronin’s continued frustration will spark the team, which has lost four of its past five games. Related Articles College Sports | Northwestern women’s basketball cancels trip to play UCLA and USC amid Los Angeles fires College Sports | UCLA football breakdown: How the Bruins look on the defensive line College Sports | No. 22 UCLA men’s basketball looks to shed ‘soft’ label College Sports | UCLA coach Mick Cronin calls Bruins ‘soft’ after blowout loss to Michigan College Sports | No. 1 UCLA women cruise to easy win at Purdue In the first half, UCLA bolted to an early lead before Maryland staged an 11-point burst that included two baskets from Gillespie and a three-point play from Derik Queen as the Terrapins grabbed a 20-13 lead. A 9-2 Maryland spree, which Gillespie started with a triple and finished with a traditional three-point play, gave the Terrapins their biggest lead of the half at 38-28. In the final 2:01 of the half, 3-pointers by Perry and Lazar Stefanovic helped UCLA slice the deficit to 40-36 at the break. But the Bruins got no closer in the second half. Reese had 16 points and 10 rebounds for Maryland. UP NEXT UCLA stays east and plays at Rutgers on Monday at 3:30 p.m. PT.