Thomas scores 21 to lead No. 13 Maryland
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Alyssa Thomas scored 21 points and No. 13 Maryland avoided an 0-3 start in the Atlantic Coast Conference with a 80-59 victory over Clemson on Sunday.
Thomas had 15 of her points in the opening half as the Terrapins (14-3, 1-2 ACC) took their 10th straight game over Clemson (8-11, 1-3).
Thomas scored five points during a 15-5 run to close the first period to wipe out the Lady Tigers 29-23 lead. Maryland continued the charge after the break, Lynetta Kizer scoring 7 points in a 17-8 run that put the Terps up 55-42.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Thomas, a 6-foot-2 freshman, finished a point away from her career best and was a rebound shy of her third consecutive double-double.
Tianna Hawkins had 19 points and 10 rebounds for Maryland.
Kirstyn Wright had 14 points to lead the Lady Tigers, who have lost 48 straight game to ranked opponents.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Maryland had struggled so far in the ACC, losing its first two conference games for the first time in 11 years. Clemson seemed the right remedy to fix the Terps, who hadn't lost to the Lady Tigers in nine straight tries coming in.
But Maryland played as erratically early on as it had in its ACC losses to Duke and Boston College.
Clemson wiped out a 12-7 lead with back-to-back 3-pointers from Wright. The Lady Tigers began to pull away and led 29-23 on Lindsey Mason's inside shot and two foul shots from Kelia Shelton with 5:48 to go.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}That's when Maryland played like the program that's been in the ACC title mix for much of the past decade, closing the half with 15-5 run to move in front. Thomas had five of her 15 first-half points in the surge while Anjale Barrett and Laurin Mincy added 3-pointers for the Terps.
Maryland put things together in the second half.
Kizer scored the first five points of the period. She added two foul shots with 15:55 left to extend Maryland's lead to 50-42. Hawkins followed with a three-point play and Kizer a basket.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Clemson cut the lead inside double-digits just once more in the contest. The Lady Tigers leading scorer coming in, Sthefany Thomas, was just 2 of 12 overall and 1 of 8 from three-point range. She finished with six points, seven off her season's average.