CAROLINA, Puerto Rico (AP) — Kaylene Smikle scored 22 points, Yarden Garzon added 17 and No. 7 Maryland held off No. 16 Kentucky 74-66 in a matchup of unbeaten teams at the Discover Puerto Rico Classic on Wednesday night.
The Terrapins (8-0) build a 20-point lead midway through the third quarter before Kentucky (7-1) rallied. Tonie Morgan scored 12 points in the fourth quarter for the Wildcats and her layup with 48 seconds remaining cut the deficit to six points at 70-64. Maryland’s Saylor Poffenbarger and Addi Mack each made a pair of free throws in the final seconds to secure the win.
Mack finished with 15 points and Poffenbarger 12 for Maryland (8-0), which was playing its first Power 4 opponent. Smikle was 9 of 11 from the line, where the Terrapins made their first 17 and finished 21 of 23. Garzon shot 5 for 10 from 3-point range.
Morgan had 22 points and eight assists for Kentucky (7-1), which shot 6 for 8 from the line and had 20 turnovers. Asia Boone added 13 points. The Wildcats were playing a ranked opponent for their second straight game.
Maryland took control early, scoring 10 straight after the Wildcats opened the game with a pair of free throws. Smiikle made a pair of layups, Garzon drilled a 3-pointer and Mack converted a three-point play. The lead reached 11 points and was 21-12 at the end of the first.
The Terrapins led 39-28 at the half, helped by 11-for-11 shooting from the line while Kentucky went 2 for 2.
Maryland stretched the lead to 20 in the middle of the third quarter, making 5 of 7 shots, including 3 of 4 from distance. Poffenbarger’s 3 made it 55-35.
Up next
Kentucky: Closes out its tournament stay facing Morgan State on Friday.
Maryland: Faces Hofstra on Thursday to wrap up the tournament.
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