Cavaliers Make a Push, No. 4 Terps Pull Away

Langhorne Becomes U-Md. Scoring Leader: Maryland 74, Virginia 62

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Jan. 18 -- Four days after its biggest win of the season, Maryland nearly had a letdown against Virginia.

Had it not been for the strong play of Crystal Langhorne and timely shots by freshman Marah Strickland, fourth-ranked Maryland might not have escaped with a 74-62 victory Friday night at John Paul Jones Arena before an enthusiastic crowd of 4,700.

Langhorne scored 20 points on 10-of-15 shooting to become Maryland's career scoring leader, while Strickland, who played all 40 minutes, had 19 points. Virginia's Monica Wright, the ACC rookie of the year last season, finished with 22 points before fouling out late in the game.

The Terrapins (21-1, 5-0), who snapped their 10-year home losing streak to Duke on Monday, looked out of sorts early against Virginia (13-5, 2-1). In the first three minutes, Maryland turned the ball over three times and Marissa Coleman went to the bench with two fouls. Coleman, who tied her career high with 30 points against the Blue Devils, sat out nearly 12 minutes of the first half.

"It was very frustrating, especially in a game like this with the crowd as emotional as it was and the game as tight at it was," Coleman said.

While Coleman watched from the bench, her teammates missed nine of their first 13 shots and committed 13 first-half turnovers. Maryland assistant coach Daron Park, filling in for Coach Brenda Frese, who did not travel with the team because of her pregnancy, went deep into his bench trying to find a combination that would work. Reserves Drey Mingo and Kat Lyons each played several minutes in the first half.

Langhorne was about the lone bright spot for Maryland in the first half. Langhorne broke the program's career scoring record on a baseline drive with 10 minutes 52 seconds remaining until halftime. Her layup over two defenders pulled the Terrapins to 18-12. Langhorne surpassed Vicky Bullett's record of 1,928 and now holds both the career scoring and rebounding records at Maryland.

"It means a lot just for me to be able to do that," Langhorne said. "Vicky Bullett was a great player. It just speaks to what our program has help me do and our coaches and my teammates."

Virginia, which had won seven in a row and nine of its last 10, capitalized on Maryland's struggles. Powered by two Cavaliers with D.C. connections, U-Va. surged to an early lead. Wright (Forest Park) scored seven of the Cavaliers' first 14 points, while Lyndra Littles (Archbishop Carroll) made back-to-back baskets to put Virginia up 18-8.

"We definitely got an awakening to how good we are and how good we can be," Wright said.

After trailing most of the first 20 minutes, Maryland closed the first half with an 8-0 run to pull to 34-33. The Terrapins took the lead with their first basket after halftime and went up 41-34 on Strickland's layup. The Cavaliers didn't go away, though. Wright's three-pointer tied the score at 41 and from there, neither team was able to gain much of an advantage.

The score was tied at 56 when Strickland and Kristi Toliver made back-to-back three-pointers with just over five minutes remaining. Those baskets broke the Cavaliers and sparked an 18-6 run that culminated in Maryland's win.

"Everybody has a lot of confidence in me," Strickland said. "I just feel so very comfortable when I go out there and play with them."

Virginia looks like it will be a contender not only in the ACC but also in the NCAA tournament. After making 20 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, the Cavaliers have missed three of the last four tournaments and haven't been since 2005. That drought should end this year. Virginia gave Maryland everything it could handle.

"We're in it," Virginia Coach Debbie Ryan said. "We're not walking into these games thinking how much are we going to lose by. It's not like that anymore. We're coming in here to win and dominate and be strong and get into the top three in the ACC and go win a national championship. That's where we are right now and that's what this program is building toward. You can see it. It's happening before your own very eyes."