DURHAM, N.C.—For nearly 39 minutes, the Terrapins women’s basketball gave Duke all it could handle.
Though the Blue Devils held the lead for much of the second half, the Terps wouldn’t go away. Led by Alyssa Thomas’s 12 points after the break, the Terps overcame a 12-point deficit and cut Duke’s lead to four with just more than a minute remaining.
But from there, it was all Blue Devils.
No. 5 Duke closed the game on a 6-2 run, holding on to clinch their 26th consecutive ACC victory at Cameron Indoor Stadium, 80-72 against the No. 8 Terps.
After falling behind the Terps early, Duke went on to build a sizable first-half lead, staying on top by as much as eight points as the game moved closer to the break.
But a 6-0 run to close the opening period allowed the Terps to cut the Blue Devils’ lead to just one at the break, 44-43.
While it was forward Tianna Hawkins’ 15 points that led the way for the Terps in the first half, the second was the Alyssa Thomas show. Thomas scored 12 of her 26 points—tying her career-high—after the break, taking a 12-point Duke lead and cutting it to just four with 1:21 remaining.
Duke’s defense held in the end however, holding the Terps to just two points over the final 81 seconds to clinch a 8-point victory.
The Terps (18-2, 5-2 ACC) will continue conference play when they host Virginia Tech in Comcast Center on Thursday. They will play the Blue Devils (16-2, 6-0) again in College Park on Feb. 19.
Josh Vitale is The Diamondback’s Terrapins women’s basketball beat reporter. He can be reached at vitale@umdbk.com.