With heat similar to the flames that accompanied the raising of their 2006 national championship banner over center court in a pregame ceremony Sunday in front of 8,345 at Comcast Center, the top-ranked Maryland women’s basketball team burned right through George Mason, 99-43.
Sophomore Kristi Toliver, who didn’t practice Saturday due to a leg injury aggravated against Middle Tennessee State, propelled the Terrapins (2-0) with 16 points on six of seven shooting in just 25 minutes.
Toliver and senior guard Shay Doron combined for 17 points of a 22-0 run that began with 10 minutes remaining in the first half. With Maryland ahead, 21-16, Doron nailed a baseline three-pointer and then finished her own fast break after stealing the ball on Mason’s next possession.
“I thought that for the first 12 minutes, we were right there with them,” said Patriots coach Debbie Taneyhill.
Toliver followed Doron’s spurt with eight straight points, including two 3-pointers. She also made a nifty feed on the break to junior forward Crystal Langhorne (14 points, four rebounds) to extend the lead to 36-15. The Terps were relentless until halftime, opening a 50-20 margin.
“Our chemistry’s great, and I love playing with [Doron and Langhorne],” said Toliver, who had finished a no-look pass from Doron earlier in the half. “We just know where each other’s going to be.”
Junior guard Lateisha Wade led the Patriots (0-1) with 15 points — 11 in the first half – and junior Moni Akintunde had a team-high five rebounds.
First half force
» Maryland junior forward Crystal Langhorne was perfect from the floor in the first half (4-for-4).
» With 12 points, Maryland senior guard Shay Doron eclipsed 1,500 career points (1,506).
» All nine Terrapins in uniform scored, including six in double figures: Toliver (16 points), Ashleigh Newman (16), Jade Perry (15), Langhorne (14), Doron (12), and Christie Marrone (12).
