Maryland Women Deal Princeton 1st Loss 85-70 In NCAA Tourney
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) -- Laurin Mincy scored 27 points, and top-seeded Maryland used a second-half blitz to knock off previously unbeaten Princeton 85-70 Monday night and advance to the Sweet 16 of the women's NCAA Tournament.
After leading by only 42-38 at the break, the Terrapins used a 17-2 run immediately after halftime to turn a surprisingly tight game into a rout.
The Terrapins (32-2) will bring a 26-game winning streak into a matchup with Duke on Saturday in Spokane, Washington. Maryland and Duke were longtime rivals in the Atlantic Coast Conference before the Terps moved to the Big Ten this season.
Lexie Brown scored 23 for the Terrapins, who will be making their fourth consecutive trip to the Sweet 16. Maryland reached the Final Four last year.
Eighth-seeded Princeton (31-1) was coming off the program's first-ever win in the NCAA Tournament, on Saturday against Wisconsin-Green Bay. The Ivy League champions hoped to make a statement against one of the nation's elite teams, and for a half, the Tigers hung right in there with the Big Ten titlists.
Blake Dietrick led Princeton with 26 points and Vanessa Smith added 15.
Princeton made 10 of its first 13 field-goal tries and led 28-24 on the Terrapins' own floor before an enthusiastic crowd that clearly favored the home team.
Outscoring Maryland 28-6 in the paint while holding center Brionna Jones without a point in the first half, Princeton had several leads before falling behind at the break. Jones had 22 points and 12 rebounds in the tournament opener against New Mexico State, but she was not a factor in this one until the second half.
With Jones struggling against the suffocating coverage of Alex Wheatley, the Terps opted to fire from the outside before halftime. Despite connecting on five 3s, Maryland was outrebounded 15-12 and allowed the Tigers to shoot at a 59 percent clip.
In the second half, however, Maryland proved to be too fast, too big and, most importantly, too talented.
After the teams exchanged baskets, Mincy scored in the lane and Jones sank two free throws. Jones and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough then made successive baskets before Mincy drilled a 3-pointer. Field goals by Brown and Malina Howard completed the run, making it 59-40 with just under 14 minutes to play.
Jones finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Mincy, in her final home game, went 9 for 11 from field, including 6 for 7 from beyond the arc.
Despite coming up short in this one, the Tigers proved they have big-time drawing power. President Barack Obama attended the opener (his niece is a backup forward) and this game attracted Supreme Court justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor, both of whom graduated from Princeton.
For a half, the Tigers gave their backers reason to believe they could pull off the upset. But Princeton couldn't sustain the momentum in the second half, going 12 for 34 from the field and being outrebounded 23-14.
TIP INS
Princeton: The Tigers are 1-5 in the NCAA Tournament. ... Princeton went 4 for 17 from beyond the arc after firing at a 40 percent clip during the regular season. ... After trailing at halftime only once during the regular season, Princeton trailed at the break in both games in this tournament. ...
Maryland: Five Terrapins scored in double figures, including Walker-Kimbrough with 10 and Tierney Pfirman with 11. ... This was only the second time the schools have met. Maryland won 76-52 in 2007.
UP NEXT:
Maryland: Seeking a berth in the Elite Eight for the third time in four years, the Terrapins face Duke on Saturday.
Princeton: Season over.
(Copyright 2015 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
