Maryland Surprises No. 1 UNC In OT

CHAPEL HILL, N.C., Feb. 9 -- In a powder-blue sea of dejected North Carolina players, the Maryland Terrapins whooped and hollered, jumped up and down and hugged each other Thursday night. It was the biggest victory of their careers, if not the biggest victory this program had enjoyed in well over a decade.

No. 6 Maryland, which hadn't won here in 10 years, rallied from a 14-point second-half deficit to upset No. 1 North Carolina, 98-95, in overtime at Carmichael Auditorium. It was the Terrapins' first win over a No. 1 team since Dec. 30, 1992, when they beat Tennessee.

Ashleigh Newman sank a three-point basket as time expired in regulation to send the game into an extra period, then Shay Doron blocked Ivory Latta's final three-point attempt in overtime to secure Maryland's victory and hand the Tar Heels (22-1, 9-1 ACC) their first loss of the season. The win moved the Terrapins (22-2, 9-1 ) into a first-place tie with North Carolina in the ACC standings.

"We've proved to a lot of people that we can play at any level," Doron said. "That was important to us. Image is important. I'm just proud of our team. It means a lot to this locker room to regroup and win like that."

Doron had a chance to send the game into overtime with five seconds remaining, but missed her three-point attempt from the top of the key. The ball hit the front of the rim and bounced toward Newman. She scooped it up and heaved it toward the basket. Somehow, it found the bottom of the net. It was her only field goal of the game.

"I didn't even know how much time was on the clock, but I had the ball," said Newman, who had missed 12 of her last 13 three-point attempts coming into the game. "At first I was like, 'What do I do?' I just threw it up. I didn't know if it was going in."

As unlikely as that shot was, it wasn't nearly as improbable as the one Marissa Coleman made in overtime -- a sideways heave that banked off the backboard and dropped through the net, putting Maryland ahead 87-83.

"That one put the dagger in," Doron said.

But North Carolina wouldn't go away. Latta, the ACC player of the week, made back-to-back three-point baskets -- including one from nearly 30 feet -- to pull the Tar Heels to 96-95 with 27seconds remaining. After Kristi Toliver made two free throws to put Maryland up three with 17seconds to go, North Carolina had three chances to send the game into another extra period. Latta missed a three-point attempt, then Camille Little's attempt from behind the arc fell away. Latta had one more try from three-point range, but her shot was blocked by Doron as time expired.

Crystal Langhorne scored 25 points and was one of five players to score in double figures for Maryland, which showed remarkable resiliency in winning this game. The Terrapins overcame poor free throw shooting, sloppy ballhandling, a raucous North Carolina crowd and a rare technical on Coach Brenda Frese. Maryland has the highest free throw percentage in the ACC, yet the Terrapins missed nearly half of their 28 free throws. North Carolina's aggressive, trapping defense also caused Maryland fits early, leading to 15 firsthalf turnovers.

Frese had said poise and patience would be key in this game, but not even Frese could keep her composure. Upset by the fouls being called against her team and those not being called against the Tar Heels, Frese received a technical foul with just under six minutes left in the first half. The technical came in the middle of a 14-3 run by North Carolina that put the Tar Heels ahead 36-27. Little scored 10 points during that stretch and had reached her season high with 17 points by halftime. Little finished with 24 points to lead the Tar Heels.

"This team, they've learned how to grind out wins," Frese said. "They've learned how tough it is when you go out on the road. They've persevered. I was real proud of their energy. It was even more special the way we grinded it out through a lot of lows in the game."

· VIRGINIA TECH 82, CLEMSON 70: Dawn Chriss scored 19 points, Kerri Gardin added 15 and Carrie Mason 14 to lead the Hokies (16-6, 3-6 ACC) at home.

Maxienne White led the Tigers (8-15, 2-7) with a game-high 21 points.