Feb 4, 2004

Box Score| Quotes

By HANK KURZ Jr.
AP Sports Writer

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - John Gilchrist scored 26 points in his return to his home state and Maryland won a tight game it had to have, beating equally desperate Virginia 71-67 Wednesday night.

The Terrapins (12-7, 3-5 Atlantic Coast Conference), whose streak of 10 straight NCAA tournament appearances would have been in serious jeopardy with a loss, pulled away with an 11-3 run in the second half and hung on despite making only 9 of 19 free throws in the last 10 minutes.

Virginia (12-7, 2-6 Atlantic Coast Conference), which swept the Terrapins last season for the first time in 10 years, pulled within 68-67 on Devin Smith's 3-pointer with 26 seconds left, but Nik Caner-Medley hit 1 of 2 free throws and D.J. Strawberry stole the ball from Todd Billet with about eight seconds left, Gilchrist's putback layup sealing it.

Elton Brown led Virginia with 24 points and J.R. Reynolds added 15, but the Cavaliers had 20 turnovers and the last one was the costliest.

Virginia used a 10-0 run early in the second half to take a 48-45 lead, but Gilchrist tied it at 50 with his fourth 3-pointer with 12:18 left. The teams traded baskets until Caner-Medley stole the ball under his own basket and laid it in, giving the Terps a 56-54 lead with 9:26 left.

A free throw and three-point play by Strawberry pushed it to 60-54 before Reynolds' 3-pointer cut it in half. But Strawberry added a free throw and Mike Jones rebounded the miss, was fouled and hit both. The points capped the run that gave Maryland a 63-57 lead with 5:41 left.

Virginia got close again, but never got even and dropped from a tie for seventh with Maryland in the ACC to a tie for last with Clemson.

Gilchrist, who starred in high school in Virginia Beach, was jeered throughout the first half and seemed to feed off the negative energy.

He had 21 first-half points, 13 in a 23-4 run that lasted only 4˝ minutes, giving the Terps a 28-16 lead. He ended the half by dribbling the clock toward zero, then swishing a 25-footer with three seconds left.

Gilchrist also had eight rebounds and nin turnovers.

Brown did his best to keep Virginia in it, scoring 17 points before halftime, and Reynolds was 4-for-4 and had nine points, but the rest of the Cavaliers were just 2-for-15 from the field with 10 turnovers.