Duke Tops Maryland, 78-67

Gerald Henderson scored 19 points, Jon Scheyer hit a key 3-pointer with 1:54 left, and the seventh-ranked Blue Devils spoiled Maryland's bid for another upset with a 78-67 victory Wednesday night.

Duke blew away the Terrapins 85-44 last month, but Maryland was coming off a surprise win over then-No. 3 North Carolina. So the Blue Devils had a feeling it wouldn't be nearly so easy this time around.

"The last time we played them they were really going in a different direction," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "We knew it would be a vintage Maryland team and we knew it would be a vintage Maryland crowd. This is a tough place to win."

The fans were on their feet long before the opening tip, and many of the students remained standing throughout. Several carried signs, one of which read, "DUKE HATES PUPPIES."

It was 60-all with 5:44 left, but by the time Scheyer's pivotal shot from beyond the arc made it 72-63, the volume of the sellout crowd had already dropped several decibels.

"We kind of seized the game there," Krzyzewski said.

Elliot Williams had 15 points and Scheyer added 12 for the Blue Devils (23-5, 9-4 Atlantic Coast Conference), who ended a three-game road losing streak in the conference. Duke has won four straight over Maryland for the first time since 1997-2000.

"It was definitely a big, big win for us," Duke's Kyle Singler said. "We knew coming in it would be a tough game. Maryland is playing well after their big win against North Carolina, but we stuck together and at the end of the game, we hit big shots."

Landon Milbourne scored 19 points for Maryland (17-10, 6-7), which played much of the second half without leading scorer Greivis Vasquez, who was saddled with foul trouble.

"It was a big impact," Milbourne said of the loss of Vasquez. "Greivis is definitely a leader on this team. He's the leading scorer, he's almost leading in every category. You can definitely see a difference when he's not on the court."

Despite the loss, Maryland coach Gary Williams lauded his team's performance.