Nov. 25, 2005
Box Score
CHARLOTTE AMALIE, U.S. Virgin Islands - Junior Shay Doron scored 16 points and No. 10 Maryland women's basketball used a second-half surge to post a 75-61 victory over No. 9 Michigan State in the Paradise Jam on Friday night. The Terps face No. 1 Tennessee on Saturday night, Nov. 26 at 8:30 p.m. ET to decide the winner of the tournament.
Doron (Great Neck, N.Y./Christ the King) made three 3-pointers and sparked a balanced attack for Maryland that saw five Terrapins score in double figures. Sophomore Ashleigh Newman (Shelbyville, Tenn./Shelbyville Area) scored 14 points, freshman Marissa Coleman (Cheltenham, Md./St. John's College [D.C.]) had 13, while sophomores Laura Harper (Elkins Park, Pa./Cheltenham) and Crystal Langhorne (Willingboro, N.J./Willingboro) added 10 each. Langhorne also grabbed a game-high 12 boards.
In the first meeting between the teams, 2005 NCAA Finalist Michigan State (2-2) took control early on. After the Terps scored the first point of the game, the Spartans scored the next eight-straight to take an 8-1 lead, forcing Terrapin head coach Brenda Frese to call a timeout at 18:36.
Coming out of the timeout, Doron knocked down a three-pointer to cut the lead in half. But MSU answered with a 10-3 run, going in front, 18-7, with 10:17 remaining in the half. Despite shooting 13 percent in the first 10 minutes, connecting on 2-of-15 shots from the floor, the Terps stuck with their shots and eventually they began to fall.
For the rest of the half, Maryland went 6-for-12 from the field, outscoring the Spartans 22-15, cutting the deficit to 33-29 at the break. In the final seconds, Doron drove down the lane and dished off to sophomore Jade Perry (Central City, Ky./Muhlenberg North) on the baseline and Perry hit a layup to cap the scoring heading into the locker room.
Maryland scored the first four points of the second half to take its first lead, 34-33, since leading, 1-0, to start the game. However, MSU had a 5-0 run to take a 40-34 lead. After a Newman fastbreak layup to cut the deficit to two, Coleman scored Maryland's next 11 points to tie the game at 49-49.
Freshman Kristi Toliver (Harrisonburg, Va./Harrisonburg) traded jumpers with All-Big Ten performer Lindsay Bowen before Doron's trey at 8:19 put Maryland ahead for good at 54-51.
Michigan State came to within one point twice, at 54-53 and then again at 56-55, but a 9-0 run over two minutes gave Maryland its first double-digit cushion, 65-55, with 4:14 remaining in the game. Maryland's final bucket of the game was a sophomore Crystal Langhorne (Willingboro, N.J./Willingboro) layup at 4:14. But the Terps went 10-for-10 from the charity stripe down the stretch to seal the victory.
The Terps shot 55.6 percent from the field in the second half and 42.6 percent for the game. Harper also had four blocks.
MSU's Bowen led all scorers with 21 points, while Liz Shimek was the only other Spartan in double figures, adding 10.
Maryland improved to 4-0, its best start since 2002-03 and only the third time since 1992-93 the Terps have started the season winning their first four games of the season. It was also the second time this season five Terps have reached double figures and the fourth time at least four Terrapins have scored at least 10 points.
Maryland faces No. 1 Tennessee for the first time since 1994. The last time the Terps defeated a No. 1-ranked squad was when it defeated the Lady Vols during the 1992-93 campaign.
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