Dec. 28, 2004

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• The Maryland basketball team (No. 24 AP/No. 23 USA Today/ESPN) overwhelmed Liberty University and coasted to a 112-68 victory over the Flames Tuesday night at Comcast Center in the teams' first ever meeting The 112 points is the highest output since putting up the same amount against two ACC opponents during the 2002 national championship season (a 112-79 win on Jan. 9 over North Carolina and a 112-92 defeat of Virginia on March 3).

• Under Gary Williams, Maryland is now 106-2 against non-conference foes on their home floor. Tonight's win increases its current streak in those games to 16 in a row.

• John Gilchrist scored a season-high 28 points (two shy of his career-mark) and reached the 20-point plateau for the fifth straight game (20 vs. American, 23 vs. George Washington, 22 vs. UNC-Asheville, 21 vs. Florida State). He shot 5-of-9 from beyond the arc and 9-of-17 overall. Juan Dixon was the last Terp to score 20 points in 5 straight games, when he accomplished the feat from during a five-game stretch from Feb. 20 to March 8, 2002.

• Nik Caner-Medley had his most productive game of the season, scoring 20 points on 9-of-12 shooting. He tied a career-high with five steals. Freshman superstar James Gist notched a career-high with 14 points on 7-of-12 shooting, while Chris McCray continued his consistent play with 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting.

• As a team, Maryland shot a very impressive 54.2 percent from the field (45-of-83) as 11 players got on the scoreboard. It was the second highest field goal percentage of the season (55.1 percent against UNC Asheville on Dec. 12).

• Ekene Ibekwe and Travis Garrison each collected double-digit rebounds with 12 and 11, respectively, helping the Terps hold a 61-30 advantage on the glass. Ibekwe was a force on the defensive end, rejecting a career-high six shots, part of a 10-block effort by the Terps. It was the second time this season that Maryland rejected 10 or more shots (11 vs. Jackson State, 11/19/04). Maryland turned the ball over only eight times, the fewest in more than a year, and turned 16 Liberty miscues into 23 points, while allowing only two points off turnovers. They outscored the Flames 23-4 in transition and 62-28 in the paint.

• Liberty's lone bright spot came from Larry Blair who scored 25 of his game-high 30 points in the second half. Blair shot 13-of-21 from the field, including 11-of-14 in the final 20 minutes.

• Poor shooting by the Flames enabled Maryland to jump out to an early lead. Trailing 6-4 two minutes in, Maryland went on a 15-2 blitz to capture a 19-8 advantage and never looked back. Maryland opened the game shooting 8-of-14, while Liberty struggled in shooting 2-of-12 from the floor. Another 17-2 surge would boost the Terrapin lead to 36-14. Gilchrist and Caner-Medley were strong in the early going, as the junior point guard drilled a three-pointer off the opening tip and the Portland, Maine native threw down several dunks and nailed an array of jumpshots.

• While Liberty made only six field goals in the entire first half, Maryland had three double-digit scorers by halftime in rolling to a 52-19 lead. Gilchrist poured in 13 points, Caner-Medley netted 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting and McCray supplied 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting. For the half, Maryland shot 22-of-41 (53.7%), while Liberty was successful on only 6-of-28 attempts (21.4%). The 33-point margin was the largest since Dec. 30, 2000, when the Terps held a 60-25 halftime edge over UMES. Nine Terps scorched the nets in the opening frame and Ibekwe pulled down 10 rebounds in the first 20 minutes.

• Gilchrist scored eight points in the first four minutes of the second half to surpass the 20-point mark. Caner-Medley fed Ibekwe for a thunderous dunk and McCray tossed a no-look, over-the-shoulder pass to Caner-Medley on the next possession for a 68-29 lead. Maryland built a 45-point lead, its largest of the season, on several occasions late in the contest.

• The Terps' newest addition, Gini Chukura, saw three minutes of action late in the game and grabbed a rebound for his first collegiate contribution.