Toliver Dials Up Long Distance for Terps

Maryland's Crystal Langhorne,left, Marissa Coleman, center, and Kristi Toliver, right, celebrate as they watch their team defeat Clemson 76-62 during the second half of their basketball game Thursday, Jan. 25, 2007, at Littlejohn Coliseum in Clemson, S.C. (AP Photo/Mary Ann Chastain) (Mary Ann Chastain - AP)

CLEMSON, S.C. -- Maryland's Crystal Langhorne was so surprised by Kristi Toliver's perfect 3-point shooting, she had to double check for herself. "You went 6-for-6?" Langhorne asked her teammate.

"Yeah," Toliver responded, "I didn't miss."

Toliver finished with 20 points and the third-ranked Terps continued the best start in school history with a 76-62 victory over Clemson on Thursday night.

The Terps (21-1, 5-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) head into their Sunday night showdown against undefeated and second-ranked North Carolina filled with confidence.

"I just trusted my shot and looked for it," Toliver said. "But I knew I was feeling pretty good when I made the first back-to-back shots there."

Toliver became a cherished name in Maryland hoops history last April with her 3-pointer to force overtime in the NCAA tournament finals. The Terps went on to beat Duke for the championship and Toliver's play is simply called, "The Shot" in the land of the turtle.

Her shooting helped Maryland surpass the 20-1 start of its 1991-92 team _ and win its sixth straight over the Lady Tigers (9-12, 1-5).

She was perfect on five 3-point attempts in the first half as the Terps built a 23-point lead.

Maryland was still comfortably ahead 68-46 with 6:42 to go when Clemson threw a little scare into the national champs with a 13-1 run that drew the Lady Tigers within 10.

That's when Toliver struck with her sixth 3 from several steps behind the line with 2:30 left to regain momentum for the Terps. It was her only field-goal attempt of the second half as she tied her career best for 3s, set last March 27 against Utah in Maryland's run to the NCAA tournament title.

"We told them they can all shoot, but (Toliver) was the most dangerous," Clemson coach Cristy McKinney said. "And everytime we did, she hit it."

Langhorne added 17 points and Marissa Coleman 15 for Maryland, which has won its past three since losing its No. 1 ranking after an 81-62 defeat at Duke.