Behind a career-high 29 points from junior guard Shyanne Sellers, Maryland women’s basketball rolled past James Madison, 78-55, on Wednesday afternoon at Xfinity Center in College Park for its seventh straight victory and 18th in a row at home.
Sellers scored 20 of her 29 points in the first half and also finished with eight rebounds, six assists and two blocks. It was the fifth game this season and ninth in her career with 20-plus points.
“It starts with your best player and one of the best in the country,” Terps coach Brenda Frese said. “I thought Shy, her week of practice led to her mentality. She set the tone from the tip. We’re asking her to carry a huge load and that’s what continues to make her so special.”
Sophomore guard Bri McDaniel added 16 points, eight rebounds and three steals for Maryland (9-3), while graduate student forward Faith Masonius scored eight points and grabbed her 500th career rebound in the first quarter. Redshirt junior forward Allie Kubek, a Towson transfer, chipped in eight points and five rebounds.
The Terps shot 40.3% from the field and 19-for-24 from the free-throw line, while Sellers went 3-for-6 from 3-point range.
After falling behind 9-0, the Terps rattled off an 11-0 run midway through the first quarter to take the lead. Maryland used a 30-14 run bridging the first and second quarters to take control of the game and took a 35-28 lead into halftime.
The Terps held the Dukes without a field goal for the final 4:38 of the third to take a 57-42 lead. JMU finished the quarter making just one of its final 14 field goal attempts.
Defensively, Maryland held James Madison to just 20 of 74 shooting (27%) and forced 21 turnovers. Peyton McDaniel led the Dukes (8-4) with 25 points and eight rebounds.
“Love these last seven wins that we’ve had in a row, taking care of business,” Frese said. “Now, it’s taking a great break and coming back and being ready for our conference.”
Maryland at Nebraska
Sunday, 2:30 p.m.
TV: Big Ten Network
