CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — Joe Harris scored 19 points and No. 17 Virginia stretched its winning streak to eight games by beating Maryland 61-53 on Monday night.
Seth Allen scored 15 points and Dez Wells had 12 for Maryland (14-11, 6-6), which had won three of four.
Malcolm Brogdon added 14 points and Akil Mitchell had 13 for the Cavaliers (20-5, 11-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), who continued their best start in conference play since the 1981-82 team opened 12-1.
The Terps and Cavaliers were tied at 35 when Harris scored on a drive.
After a block by Maryland, Justin Anderson soared at the other end to block a shot by Maryland's Roddy Peters near the rim and saved the ball. He started a fast break that moments later was capped by Harris' 3-pointer from the right corner, arousing a crowd that had grown quiet by the tight ballgame.
It was 52-41 with just under 5 minutes to play when the Terps staged a rally, getting seven points from Nick Faust and a basket from Wells in a 9-2 run that brought them within 54-50.
Consecutive 3-pointers by Harris gave Virginia a 33-29 lead in the opening minutes of the second half, but the Cavaliers then went nearly 4 minutes without a basket as the Terps pulled even at 35.
The Cavaliers trailed 17-13 before scoring eight straight points, the last four by Mitchell. Maryland promptly launched a 9-2 run, but Brogdon found Mitchell under the basket with an inbounds pass from halfcourt with 1.8 seconds to play in the half. Mitchell's dunk made it 26-25.
