No. 3 Maryland beats Iowa 100-81 to stay unbeaten in Big Ten
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) - With a solid starting lineup and a bench deep with talent, Maryland has a knack for turning a tight game into a blowout.
It's a quality that Iowa knows too well.
Brionna Jones scored 28 points, Shatori Walker-Kimbrough added 18 and third-ranked Maryland completed a season sweep of the Hawkeyes with a 100-81 victory Sunday.
The score was tied at 30 in the second quarter before the Terrapins (21-1, 9-0 Big Ten) used a 26-6 run to pull away.
"We had a good game going," Iowa coach Lisa Bluder said. "All of a sudden, any lapse you have against them, they just take full advantage of it."
Maryland scored 33 points in the second quarter, including 11 by freshman Destiny Slocum, to go up 56-36 at halftime. The Terrapins made 13 of 17 field goal tries in the period, including 4 of 6 from beyond the arc.
"We were able to kind of settle in, and in the second quarter our starters did a tremendous job of moving the ball and being aggressive against their zone," Maryland coach Brenda Frese said. "And we had some real good energy off the bench."
Reserve forward Brianna Fraser scored 17 points, Slocum contributed 11 points and 11 assists and Kaila Charles scored 10.
Maryland's nine-game winning streak includes a 16-point rout of Iowa on Jan. 14. In that game, the Terrapins trailed at halftime before outscoring the Hawkeyes 55-35 the rest of the way.
"They have a great assortment of weapons," Bluder said. "They just have so many things for you to worry about."
Maryland reached the midpoint of its Big Ten schedule as the only unbeaten team in conference play. Since joining the conference three years ago, Maryland is 43-2 in the league and 6-0 in the Big Ten tournament.
The Terrapins blistered Iowa with 60 percent shooting, including 76.5 percent in the pivotal second quarter. Jones fought off an early ankle sprain to make 12 of 13 shots and help Maryland reach the 100-point mark for the fifth time this season.
"To put 100 points up in a conference game is pretty incredible," Frese said.
Iowa (13-8, 4-4) has won three of five; both losses in that span are against Maryland.
"I'm happy with our offense today," Bluder said. "We just didn't get the job done defensively."
Kathleen Doyle led the Hawkeyes with 21 points and Ally Disterhoft had 16.
Iowa got within 11 in the third quarter, but never found a way to blunt Maryland's precision shooting.
The second half was almost a formality. After a 3-point play by Disterhoft tied the game at 30 with 6:57 left in the first half, Iowa made only one more field goal before the break.
Slocum, meanwhile, starred on the other end. Her 3-pointer capped a 10-1 run that made it 40-31. Minutes later, the 5-foot-7 guard ignited a fast break with a no-look pass to Walker-Kimbrough, who flipped the ball to Kristen Confroy for a layup.
Finally, Slocum beat the buzzer with a 3-pointer from well beyond the arc. She was swarmed by her teammates before the Terrapins headed to the tunnel.
WE'RE NUMBER 9
Although Maryland's lone loss of the season came to UConn, 87-81 on Dec. 29, the selection committee has the Terrapins ranked No. 9 in part because of the rest of the Big Ten is not very strong.
"Those ranking are done to get people to talk about the game," Frese said. "Any of that in January has no significance on what it's going to look like in March."
BIG PICTURE
Iowa: The Hawkeyes can compete with just about any team in the Big Ten, but they simply don't have enough talent or speed to hang with Terrapins.
Maryland: The Terrapins remain the class of the conference and solidified their stature as one of the finest teams in the nation.
UP NEXT
Iowa: Seeking a series sweep, the Hawkeyes host Rutgers on Thursday night. Iowa beat the Scarlet Knights 71-59 on Jan. 17.
Maryland: The Terps take on Purdue on the road Thursday night. It's the lone regular-season meeting between the teams.