Duke 93  Maryland 84

Duke outscores the Terps by 18 in the second half with help from DeMarcus Nelson's career high 27 points.  The Blue Devils sit alone atop the ACC at 5-0!

"We came out in the second half with the mindset that we are going to attack them and whatever it takes we were going to win." - Duke Senior Captain DeMarcus Nelson

COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) -- Facing its biggest deficit of the season in a hostile environment, No. 4 Duke showed its resilience in denying Maryland another upset.

DeMarcus Nelson scored 19 of his 27 points in the second half, Gerald Henderson added 23, and the Blue Devils rallied to beat the Terrapins 93-84 Sunday night.

Duke (17-1, 5-0 ACC) had not trailed by more than six points in any game prior to falling behind 51-42 at halftime. But the Blue Devils fought back in front of a boisterous sellout crowd hopeful of seeing Maryland earn its sixth win in eight games against its hated rival.

James Gist scored 26 and Bambale Osby had 20 points and 15 rebounds, both career highs, for the Terrapins (12-8, 2-3).

Maryland was coming off an 82-80 win on the road against then-No. 1 North Carolina. That was eight days earlier, and unfortunately for the Terrapins, the momentum generated from that breakthrough victory could not be sustained.

Duke led by 2 before baskets by Henderson and Nelson ignited an 8-2 spurt that made it 83-75. A 3-pointer by Gist got Maryland to 84-81, but Nelson made a driving layup for a 5-point cushion with 61 seconds to go.

The Terrapins would get no closer than 4 points.

Duke launched its comeback at the outset of the second half by making three straight baskets, two by Nelson. A three-point play by Nelson got the Blue Devils to 57-55, and minutes later a 3-pointer by Kyle Singler put Duke up 64-63.

Greivis Vasquez answered with a layup and an off-balance baseline jumper, but Terps reserve David Neal missed a layup and the Blue Devils used a 3-pointer by Greg Paulus and two foul shots by Nelson to move back in front.

The Terrapins would not lead again.

Despite forcing 13 turnovers and getting 16 points from Henderson, Duke trailed at halftime for the first time this season.

The crowd was in a frenzy at the outset, and a quick start by the Terrapins only raised the volume. Maryland made its first four field goal tries, including three straight layups by Osby, and a 3-pointer by Vasquez made it 11-5.

The Terrapins opened 7-for-10 from the floor but had five turnovers in the opening seven minutes and fell behind for the first time when Henderson made two foul shots for an 18-16 advantage.

It was 29-25 before Landon Milbourne hit a 3-pointer to spark a 10-0 run that put Maryland back in front. Gist had two dunks during the 90-second spree.

A technical foul on the Duke bench helped the Terrapins close the half with a 9-2 flurry.

Official Box Score   Game Quotes Here   Updated Team Stats

Bob's take - Maryland is big upfront with James Gist (6'8" 235) and Bambale Osby (6'8" 250) averaging 14.8 ppg/7.9 rpg and 11 ppg/6.4 rpg respectively. The Terps like to pound the ball inside to their big guys. They've had eight days to prepare for the Blue Devils after their stunning 82 - 80 win over the Tar Heels on January 19th. Finally, the Terps seem to always play their best against Duke. This will be a tough, physical game and to win the Blue Devils will have to play a complete 40 minutes.

The Terps turn the ball over 16.7 times per game and they are young with seven Freshmen on their roster. Look for Duke to exploit this weakness in the game. Duke will attempt to deny Maryland's big frontline the ball by applying severe perimeter pressure and cutting off the passing lanes. Much like in the victory over Florida State, Duke will convert turnovers into transition points.

On offense, Duke will spread the court and drive the lane in an attempt to draw fouls on Maryland's frontline. Maryland cannot afford foul trouble because their bench is inexperienced. Forcing Gist or Osby to the bench with fouls would result in a big advantage for the Blue Devils. The same goes for Vasquez in the backcourt. This game should be close to the end so knocking down free throws will be vital for success. As always, Duke will take 3-pointers when available, but Maryland is second in the ACC (behind Duke) in 3-point FG Percent Defense.

In the end, Gist and Osby will get their points, but the key to a Duke victory will be shutting down Greivis Vasquez and Eric Hayes. Duke's small line-up will see plenty of action as Coach K will attempt to force Gary Williams to adjust to our style of play. A perimeter oriented game favors the Blue Devils. Duke is going to need Freshman Nolan Smith to have a big defensive game.

My prediction: Duke 76 - Maryland 71

Mark's take -  The keys to the game for Duke is to -

1-  match Maryland's emotion

2 -  be consistent and resilient on offense

3-  connect from the there point stripe and free throw line

4-  keep Kyle Singler out of foul trouble

5-  run at will to offset Marylands bigs from setting up

6- seal cutters from the backdoor on defense, or switch with precision

It'll be a tense, physical game with a lot of emotion dispersed.  I feel Duke is up to the challenge in College Park.  The pick here is Duke 81  Maryland 76

Duke Off vs. Maryland Def	Maryland Off vs. Duke Def
84.8 Pts F 65.1 Pts A 48.6 FG% 36.5 FG% 34.6 Reb. 33.5 Reb.	72.1 Pts F 64.1 Pts A 44.3 FG% 40.9 FG% 33.5 Reb. 31.8 Reb.

Duke vs Maryland game links:

Out West, on Friday night, Reno defeated Carson 79 - 56.  Olek Czyz scored 18 points for the Huskies who were led by Austin Morgan's 28 points. On Saturday, Czyz scored 16 points as Reno defeated Wooster by 49 points, 93 – 44.

In Memphis, Elliot Williams remains sidelined nursing a sore knee. In his absence, teammate Laurence Bowers, a Missouri signee, stepped up and led St. George's to a 64 - 60 victory. The linked article contains an update on Elliot Williams’ health.

Leslie McDonald scored on a fast-break dunk to give Briarcrest Christian a 59 - 58 lead, but the Saints couldn't hold on losing to Christian Brothers 62 - 59. McDonald finished with 23 points.

In Norfolk, Churchland defeated Booker T. Washington 53 - 46. BTW made just 2 of 11 field goal attempts over the final four minutes as Churchland finished the game on a 12 - 5 run. DeShawn Painter was held to six points in the contest.

In Asheville, Mason Plumlee scored 14 points as Christ School defeated Cannon School 79 - 62 on Friday night. He also pulled down 11 rebounds. Mason's brother Miles, who has signed a LOI to attend Stanford, scored 35 points in the win. On Saturday, Mason scored eight points as Christ School defeated Rabun Gap 72 – 39. Christ School's game against Spartanburg Day on Thursday will be televised on WMYA (Channel 40) so if your cable service includes that channel check out the game and provide the Message Board a report on Mason Plumlee.

Finally, here is another article on the big American Heritage vs. Pine Crest game down in Florida.