Jan. 25, 2009
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COLLEGE PARK, Md. - In a game that saw 11 lead changes, the No. 12/13 University of Maryland women's basketball team used a Kristi Toliver-fueled 13-0 run in the second half to seize momentum en route to a 77-71 victory over No. 2/3 North Carolina in Atlantic Coast Conference action at the Comcast Center on Sunday night.
Toliver, who scored 18 of her game-high 23 points in the second half, netted 11 of the Terrapins' 13 points during a scoring surge that put Maryland (16-3, 4-1 ACC) ahead 54-42 with 14:24 remaining. The senior ACC Preseason Player of the Year sank three 3-pointers during the stretch and five straight UM field goals overall to pull the Terps from a one-point deficit to a lead they would not relinquish.
Toliver added a game-high eight assists in 39 minutes of action.
UNC's Jessica Breland netted 10 of 13 Tar Heel points during a four-minute stretch midway through the second half to get to within four points of Maryland. However, that's as close as UNC (17-3, 3-2) would get as Maryland answered with a 10-4 run to once again clutch a double-digit lead, 75-65 with 4:33 remaining, thanks in part to the fifth foul on UNC's Preseason All-ACC selection Rashanda McCants coupled with a technical foul assessed to Tar Heel coach Sylvia Hatchell.
UM made 3-of-4 free throws during the sequence and did not see its lead threatened the remainder of the game.
Three-time All-ACC performer Marissa Coleman tallied her 32nd career double-double, most among active ACC players, with 22 points and 10 rebounds. The senior opened the contest with 18 first-half points, the most points by a Terrapin in the opening 20 minutes this season, on the way to tying her season-high point total (22 points versus UCLA on Nov. 23).
"It's just a special win to be led by our two seniors," Maryland head coach Brenda Frese said. "We even said that as coaches at halftime. Our seniors were going to win us this game and it's just a tremendous team win.
"I told these guys before we played that you always seize the opportunity and it's just a tremendous way for us to win this game."
Coleman also tied her season-high of three 3- pointers in game by going 3-for-3 from beyond the arc in the first half alone.
"Whoever has the hot hand, we're finding them," Coleman said. "In the first half, it was me. In the second half, we were finding Kristi in the open spots. It's just credit to us and how we're coming together as a team."
Maryland out-rebounded North Carolina 51-38 with 24 offensive rebounds for the Terps, which they converted into 20 second-chance points. UM went 9-for-17 (52.9 percent) from 3-point range led by Toliver's 4-for-7 night from beyond the arc.
Maryland junior forward Demauria Liles grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds, which tied for the team's season-high total (tying Lynetta Kizer's 15 rebounds at TCU on Nov. 14). Liles posted her sixth double-double of the season by adding 12 points.
UNC's Breland scored a team-high 18 points on 8-of-19 shooting with 12 rebounds. Italee Lucas and Cetera DeGraffenreid scored 13 points apiece for the Tar Heels.
Kizer fell one rebound shy of a double-double, registering 10 points with nine rebounds. Sophomore guard Marah Strickland chipped in eight points and went 2-for-4 from 3-point range.
Maryland snapped a three-game losing streak to North Carolina, upending the Tar Heels for the first time since the 2006 Final Four, and extended its home win streak to 29 games. It was Maryland's 19th all-time victory against a top-five team and the fourth time it has beaten a top-five Tar Heels team.
Coleman scored eight early points to spark Maryland to a 14-2 lead four-and-a-half minutes into the contest. She began the game 5-for-5 from the field with a pair of early 3-pointers.
Maryland controlled the game's early tempo and held another 12-point lead, 19-7, at the 14:11 mark after a Strickland 3-pointer. The Tar Heels, however, responded by scoring 14 unanswered points to grasp a 21-19 advantage.
A Kizer layup at 8:07 off a Liles assist ended UM's drought and tied the game at 21 apiece. UNC grabbed a four-point lead moments later, but five straight points by Coleman regained the lead for the Terps.
Toliver answered a She'la White 3-pointer with a trey of her own then dished a fast-break assist down the lane to Kizer to give the Terps a 31-28 edge.
DeGraffenreid stripped Toliver at mid-court with under a minute remaining in the opening half and scored an uncontested layup for a 34-32 UNC lead. Coleman netted the final two points of the half, from the free-throw line, to tie the game at 34 heading into intermission.
The Comcast Center attendance of 12,671 stands as the 10th-largest in ACC history. Nine of the top-10 attendances in conference history have been games in which Maryland has participated.
The Terrapins will begin a two-game road swing on Friday as they travel to Charlottesville, Va., for their next contest versus the Virginia Cavaliers. Tip-off from John Paul Jones Arena is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.
