COLLEGE PARK, MD – No. 11 Maryland women’s basketball cruised past Saint Francis, 107-35, on Sunday at XFINITY Center. The Terps advanced to 6-0. The last time they started the year with six or more consecutive wins was during the 2021-22 season when they earned a trip to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16. The Terps won by 72 points. It was Maryland’s largest margin of victory since winning by 73 vs. Georgia State (114-41) on Dec. 18, 2019.
Saint Francis scored the first bucket of the afternoon, but Maryland responded by outscoring it 32-1 for the rest of the quarter. Kaylene Smikle scored 15 of Maryland’s first-quarter points. In leading 32-3 at the end of the first quarter, since quarters were first introduced in 2015-16, Maryland has only led by 29 or more points after the first quarter twice previously. The last time it happened was on Dec. 6, 2017, against Mount St. Mary’s. The Terps led by 31 (37-6) at the end of the first in that game.
Maryland stretched its lead to 66-9 at halftime. The nine points were the fewest allowed in a half since Nov. 16, 2014, when the Terps allowed seven vs. Wagner, leading 49-7 at halftime of that game.
Smikle led all scorers, finishing with 25 points. It was her fifth consecutive game scoring 20 or more points, becoming the first Terp to string together that many performances since Jakia Brown-Turner last season (five). It was also the first time in her career she had strung together that many 20-point…
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