Jones helps No. 6 Maryland rout Pittsburgh 70-49
ST. THOMAS, U.S. Virgin Islands (AP) Maryland wouldn't let fatigue slow it down.
Brionna Jones had 22 points and 14 rebounds and No. 6 Maryland beat Pittsburgh 70-49 on Saturday night in the final game of the Paradise Jam.
Shatori Walker-Kimbrough added 16 points to help the Terrapins (6-0) win for the third time in three days.
''It was a hard-fought battle between both teams,'' coach Brenda Frese said. ''It started to show, three games in three days. It wasn't the prettiest, but we found a way. We dominated the glass and had some uncharacteristic turnovers we need to improve upon. I like how we hung tough down the stretch to come away with a championship.''
Maryland led 19-11 at the end of the first and scored the first 11 points of the second quarter to go up 31-11. Pitt rallied with an 11-2 run and trailed 33-22 at the half. Pitt held the Terrapins scoreless for the final 5:09 of the period and forced eight turnovers in the second quarter.
The Terrapins were up 11 early in the third quarter before scoring 16 of the final 21 points in the period to take a 55-33 lead. Walker-Kimbrough had seven points during the spurt. Pitt tried to rally in the fourth, scoring 13 of the first 15 points in the period, but that's as close as the Panthers could get. Aysia Bugg and Yacine Dopp had all 13 of the points.
Diop finished with 14 points and Kalista Walker added 12 for the Panthers (4-2), who were outrebounded 50-22.
''We knew rebounding was going to be key tonight,'' Pitt coach Suzie McConnell-Serio said. ''Going in to the game we knew we didn't match up with their size, but our kids competed for 40 minutes and that is all we ask them to do. This was a great learning experience for our young team going up against one of the best teams in the country.''
TIP-INS:
Pittsburgh: The Panthers entered the Paradise Jam with a 25-point average margin of victory in their first three games, but faced much stiffer competition in the tournament. They went 1-2 to finish third.
Maryland: The Terps' bench outscored Pitt 22-0. ... Jones earned MVP honors of the tournament averaging 17.7 points and 13.0 and Walker-Kimbrough was on the all-tournament team.
UP NEXT:
Pittsburgh will visit Michigan on Thursday in the ACC/Big Ten challenge.
Maryland will host No. 23 Syracuse on Wednesday in the ACC/Big Ten challenge.
