STATE COLLEGE, PA. – No. 4 Maryland (12-0, 1-0 B1G) can win plenty of ways, with newcomers sinking baskets or with veterans steadying the course after rough starts.
 
The Terrapins leaned on the latter group to win at Penn State 77-61 Friday night in the Big Ten opener for both teams.
 
Junior Kaila Charles scored 16 of her 23 points in the second half and fellow junior Stephanie Jones added 17 points for Maryland. She also helped lock down the Lady Lions' shooters in a fourth quarter that saw Penn State (7-5, 0-1) score just four points.
 
"I trust these two with everything," Maryland coach Brenda Frese said. "Just that aggressiveness in their trap-set, it was a slower-paced game to begin with so I thought that really raised the level of play."
 
The teams traded buckets through the third quarter until Maryland went up for good after Jones hit a pair of free throws with 8:08 left.
 
"We needed to bring our own energy," Charles said.
 
It came on the defensive end where Shakira Austin, a freshman who entered the night with back-to-back 17-point games, pulled down 10 of her game-high 11 rebounds and joined Jones to hold Penn State to just 12 fourth-quarter shots.
 
Maryland won the rebounding battle 52-29 with 38 in its own end and freshman Taylor Mikesell had 13 points for the Terrapins who trailed 57-56 after three quarters.
 
Teniya Page led Penn State (7-5) with 24 points, and Kamaria McDaniel had 16. The Lady Lions lost for the fourth time in seven games.
 
Maryland opened a 15-8 lead before Penn State's offense came alive late in the first quarter.
 
Penn State's Jaida Travascio-Green made a 3-pointer to spark a 13-3 run over the final 3:39 of the first.
 
Page scored nine of Penn State's final 13 points in the first half to help the Lady Lions take a 41-39 lead.

Maryland is ranked No. 4 in both the Associated Press poll and the USA Today Division I Top 25 Coaches Poll.
 
Frese is in her 17th season as the head coach of the Terrapins. She's led them to a record of 441-119 (.788). She is two wins from 500 in her 20-year head coaching career with a record of 498-149 (.770).
 
The Terps have earned a record of 73-8 in Big Ten play, including their 11-1 record in the Big Ten Tournament. They are 85-12 (.876) against Big Ten opponents in the 17 years under Brenda Frese.
 
Next, Maryland will host Rutgers (8-3, 1-0) Monday for a "Noon Years Eve" game. The game will feature party hats, and Maryland-themed 2019 glasses. Fans can also enter-to-win prizes by dropping their Noon Year's resolutions into an enter- to-win box on the concourse. For tickets, click here.
 
The Terps and the Scarlet Knights will tip off at noon. Parking is free and open for Monday's game.
 
Fans can watch the Maryland Rutgers game at BTN2Go.com or on the BTN2Go app with their BTN Plus subscriptions. Live stats will also be available.
 
The Associated Press contributed to this report.