Maryland 84, N.C. State 70

2/9/2008 9:14 PM

By DAVID GINSBURG
AP Sports Writer

COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) -James Gist scored a career-high 30 points, Greivis Vasquez tied a school record with 15 assists, and Maryland used a strong second half to beat North Carolina State 84-70 Saturday night.

The win was the fourth straight for the Terrapins (16-8, 6-3 ACC), who didn't take their first lead until Gist made a layup to make it 38-36 with 18:31 left. After the Wolfpack pulled even, Maryland scored 12 straight points to go up 50-38.

North Carolina State (15-8, 4-5) never cut the margin under 7 after that.

The Terrapins shot 20-for-27 (74 percent) from the floor in the second half after going 13-for-31 before halftime.

Gist, a 6-foot-9 senior forward, went 13-for-18 from the field and 3-for-4 at the line in topping his previous career high of 27. It was the most points scored by a Maryland player since Nik Caner-Medley had 30 against Temple in January 2006.

Vasquez tied the school single-game assists mark set by Terrell Stokes against Western Carolina in November 1998. Vasquez had 13 points and fell one rebound short of a triple-double.

Gavin Grant scored 17, and Courtney Fells and J.J. Hickson each had 14 for the Wolfpack, who led by as many as 9 points in the first half. NC State is 2-6 on the road this season, including 1-5 in the ACC.

With the score tied at 38, Maryland's Bambale Osby made two straight layups and Landon Milbourne scored on a drive. Vasquez and Gist followed with layups, and Eric Hayes capped the 12-point blitz with a jumper.

Gist scored 18 points in the first half, but Grant tallied 13 to put the Wolfpack up 33-31 at the break.

Maryland missed its first six shots and trailed 7-0 before Gist tipped in his own miss and added a free throw to complete a three-point play. Milbourne followed with a short jumper and Gist scored in the lane to tie it.

The Terrapins went 0-for-4 with two turnovers in their next six trips down the court. Hayes ended the drought with a 3-pointer to make it 14-10, but minutes later Grant and Javier Gonzalez both hit 3-pointers in a 8-2 spree that made it 26-18.

It was 31-22 before Gist hit a baseline jumper, a 3-pointer and a dunk in a 9-0 run that evened the score for the first time since the opening tap.

Maryland coach Gary Williams was honored before the game for earning his 600th win on Wednesday at Boston College. He ranks eighth in victories among active coaches in NCAA Division-I basketball, and is the winningest coach in Maryland history.

He's now 30-11 against the Wolfpack with Maryland.