Plumlee leads No. 8 Duke over Maryland 74-61

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Mason Plumlee scored 23 points, and No. 8 Duke averted its first losing streak of the season by pulling away to a 74-61 victory over Maryland on Wednesday night.

Seeking to rebound from a rare home loss, the Blue Devils trailed 47-46 with 12:54 left but outscored Maryland 28-14 the rest of the way.

Ryan Kelly had 14 points and Austin Rivers contributed 10 for Duke (17-3, 5-1 Atlantic Coast Conference). The Blue Devils have dominated this rivalry of late, winning four straight and 10 of 11.

Terrell Stoglin scored 16 for the Terrapins (12-7, 2-3).

Before the game, Maryland honored former coach Gary Williams by dedicating the court in his name. Williams, the winningest coach in the history of the program, revved up the sellout crowd with his signature fist pump as he entered the arena.

Williams' replacement, Mark Turgeon, had the Terps ready to play. But Maryland simply didn't have the talent to hang with the Blue Devils, who were eager to bounce back from Saturday's loss to Florida State.

Down 42-38 early in the second half, the Terrapins got a 3-pointer from Pe'Shon Howard and a runner in the lane by Stoglin to move in front. After a Duke misfire, Maryland 7-foot-1 center Alex Len hit a fadeaway jumper in the lane for a 45-42 lead.

Rivers answered with two straight baskets, sparking an 11-2 run that included five points by Plumlee.

It was 53-48 before Rivers scored on a drive and Ryan Kelly drilled a jumper to put Duke up by nine with 8:48 left. Maryland went nearly 5 minutes without a field goal before Nick Faust hit a 3-pointer to get the Terrapins to 57-52 with 7:59 to go.

Plumlee scored 12 points, and Duke bounced back from an early eight-point deficit to go up 37-34 at halftime.

With the crowd still pumped following the pregame ceremony for Williams, the Terrapins got five points from Sean Mosley and a 3-pointer from Howard in a 14-4 run that made it 18-10.

Enthusiasm over the quick start was blunted when Len picked up two fouls in a 17-second span and went to the bench after playing for less than a minute. Len did not start after spraining his right ankle in Saturday's game against Temple.

With the middle of the lane open, the Blue Devils repeatedly went inside and took a 29-26 lead on a hook shot by Miles Plumlee. Duke scored 22 first-half points in the lane, which helped offset a 2-for-9 performance from beyond the arc.