February 1, 1999

Box Score

DURHAM, N.C. - Both Duke and Maryland put one of the Atlantic Coast Conference's biggest players on the court, but it was the Blue Devils' supporting cast that proved to be the difference Monday night.

No. 9 Duke won 72-54 for a school-record 13th straight victory and stayed unbeaten in the ACC.

The Blue Devils were again led by 6-foot-6 Michele VanGorp, who hit 10 of 11 shots from the floor for 21 points and also had six rebounds. Maryland's 6-8 junior Branka Bogunovic recorded her seventh double-double of the season with 15 points and 10 rebounds.

But Bogunovic had to play 39 minutes while VanGorp put in 28. Maryland got 12 points from the three substitutes who played. The Blue Devils' bench produced 17 points.

"They're just a deeper and more experienced team than we are," said Maryland coach Chris Weller, whose team lost for the sixth straight time at Cameron Indoor Stadium. "That's why they're one of the best teams in the country."

Facing VanGorp, 6-4 Payton Black or 6-1 Lauren Rice, Bogunovic still managed to hit 7-of-9 of nine shots.

"Give Branka some credit," VanGorp said. "She played 39 minutes. That's a long time on the court. If I had to play 39 minutes, I'd get tired, too."

VanGorp and Bogunovic scored all but one of their baskets in the game's first 25 minutes.

The Blue Devils led 53-48 after Kelley Gibson hit her third 3-pointer of the second half with 10:18 remaining. Duke went on a 15-0 run over the next seven minutes as Maryland committed seven turnovers and missed six shots.

"They were red-hot," Weller said. "It seemed they all hit big baskets."

Nicole Erickson went 4-for-4 beyond the arc to add 14 points for Duke (18-4, 10-0 ACC).

Losing its seventh ACC game in eight outings, Maryland (3-16, 1-9 ACC) got 12 points from Gibson and 11 from Tiffany Brown.

"I thought our defense was working the entire second half, even though Maryland was hitting a lot of their shots," said Duke coach Gail Goestenkors. "It just finally started to work at the end."

VanGorp hit nine of her first 10 shots to help Duke turn a 33-33 halftime tie into a 46-40 lead with 14:49 left to play.