jjohnson@heraldsun.com; 419-6667
DURHAM -- Duke gutted out a 71-59 win over Maryland with a final 10-minute spurt of second-chance scoring and free-throw shooting on Sunday at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Karima Christmas scored a career-high 25 points to led Duke, which swept the regular-season series with the Terrapins.
"It's always fun to have a battle and go back and forth at each other," Christmas said. "I think I just stayed focused. If I was open and had the opportunity to shoot, I just shot like it was a regular shot."
Christmas finished 7 of 13 from the floor, including 4 of 6 from behind the arc. She also made 7 of 8 free throws.
"Karima was outstanding," Duke coach Joanne P. McCallie said. "She was attacking at all times, very aggressive, very confident, and showed a tremendous amount of leadership on the floor. I'm very proud of our team, our effort, our fight, especially in the second half.
Junior guard Jasmine Thomas finished with eight points and became the 26th player in Duke history to reach the 1,000-point plateau. Senior Joy Cheek finished with 17 points.
The score was tied at 47 with 9:55 left in the game, but it took almost two minutes for another point to be scored after a series of missed shots and turnovers. Thomas gave Duke the lead for good when the she hit the second of two free throws with 8:03 left.
More missed shots and a Maryland turnover followed until Krystal Thomas rebounded a Bridgette Mitchell miss and stuck it back in for a three-point Duke lead. A steal by Thomas led to a layup and a 52-47. But the Terps were able to get back to within a point once more with 4:23 left in the game. Then Duke took over and won it going away.
"For the first 36 minutes we were right there," Maryland coach Brenda Friese said. "In the last four, you saw what a veteran team like Duke can do. Duke was really aggressive and forced us into a lot of turnovers."
While the Blue Devils won the game down the stretch with toughness, they started the game with a silky smooth start with some of their best outside shooting of the season. Duke hit seven of its season-high eight 3-pointers in the first 20 minutes against the Terrapins. Six of their first eight made field goals came from behind the arc, including three almost from the same spot on the left baseline.
"That was the hot spot for us," Cheek said. " We shot them with confidence. We were just taking open shots."
It was a tight game at 19-19 until the Blue Devils went on a little run to get some breathing room. But Thomas picked up her second foul after giving the Blue Devils a 27-19 lead with under nine minutes left in the first half. From there Duke struggled offensively with her on the bench and Maryland scrapped its way back into the game.
The Terps eventually took a 33-32 lead while the Blue Devils went almost the final seven minutes with a point. But with 10second s left, Keturah Jackson forced a Maryland turnover and was fouled. She made a pair of free throws and then Christmas caused another turnover and turned it into a three-point play attempt with under a second to play. Christmas missed her free throw but Duke took a 36-33 lead into the break.
Duke solidified its standing atop the ACC and can clinch the regular season in its next game on Friday at home against Virginia.
