COLLEGE PARK, Md.  – Senior Kaila Charles posted a season-high 28 points to lead No. 17 Maryland's second half surge past Ohio State, 72-62, Monday night at the XFINITY Center.​
 
The Terrapins (11-3, 2-1 B1G) trailed at half, then took over in the third quarter by relying on their defense. They held the Buckeyes (8-6, 1-2) to just nine points in the 10-minute period and forced 12 turnovers. Charles forced three of them and Blair Watson forced four.
 
"I loved the response coming out of the locker room," head coach Brenda Frese. "Obviously, I challenged our team at halftime, because I didn't really feel their energy, specifically on the defensive end. I think our seniors have been extremely consistent but I thought we could do a lot more defensively and executing on the offensive end. I saw so much of our fight when you talk about the third quarter getting back to our defense and rebounding and running the floor and I loved it."

Charles went 13-for-19 from the floor and added seven rebounds with four steals. Stephanie Jones, Ashley Owusu and Watson added eight points each. Watson led the Terps' defense effort with seven steals.
 
Ohio State led 25-24 at the end of the first quarter, after hitting four three-pointers and shooting 58 percent from the floor. Charles scored 10 of her points in the period.
 
The Buckeyes won the second quarter 17-11, to open a 42-35 lead at halftime.
 
A steal by Charles, then a bucket on the other end, cut the Buckeyes' lead to five at 47-42 with 6:39 left. Then, Taylor Mikesell hit a three to cut it to two. After trading buckets, a fastbreak layup by Owusu tied the game.
 
A layup by Charles with 7:56 to play started an 11-0 run that gave Maryland the lead for good.

Dorka Juhasz and Jacy Sheldon led the Buckeyes with 12 points each.
 
Maryland owns the series over Ohio State, 9-6.
 
Next, the Terps will hit the road for a two-game road swing. They will play at Iowa (11-3, 2-1) Thursday at 8 p.m. ET. The matchup will be televised on the Big Ten Network. Then, Maryland will play at No. 24 Michigan (11-3, 2-1) Sunday at noon. The Terps-Wolverines game will be televised on ESPN2.