COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Alyssa Thomas had 16 points and 13 rebounds, and No. 15 Maryland had four other players score in double figures in a surprisingly easy 88-65 victory over No. 10 North Carolina on Sunday.
Diandra Tchatchouang scored 13, Lynetta Kizer and Alicia DeVaughn each had 12, and Laurin Mincy added 10 points for the Terrapins (16-3, 3-2 Atlantic Coast Conference). Maryland committed a whopping 28 turnovers but shot 48 percent from the floor and finished with a 55-32 rebounding advantage.
Italee Lucas scored 17 for the Tar Heels (17-3, 3-2). After opening the season with 14 straight wins, North Carolina has since gone 3-3.
It was the Tar Heels' most lopsided loss to Maryland since an 84-62 defeat in 1998.
The Terrapins opened the second half with a 12-4 run to go up 56-36. Tchatchouang got the Terrapins started with a 3-pointer, and Kizer capped the surge with a three-point play.
After North Carolina closed to 60-46, Mincy had five points and Kizer contributed a basket and two free throws to an 11-2 spree that put the Terrapins up by 23 with nine minutes left.
Anjale Barrett finished with eight points and 11 assists for Maryland, which never trailed after breaking an early 4-4 tie.
The Terrapins committed 17 turnovers but shot 55 percent and outrebounded the Tar Heels 25-11 in taking a 44-32 halftime lead. DeVaughn had 12 points, three rebounds and an assist in only nine minutes.
Maryland made seven of its first 10 shots and got six points from Thomas in a 19-5 run that made it 23-9 with nine minutes elapsed.
Despite going 3 for 15 with five turnovers at the outset, North Carolina closed to 38-32 before going cold late in the half.