Basketball coaches often talk about the importance of playing effectively and consistently for a full 40 minutes.
Sometimes, though, 20 minutes is good enough.
Lynetta Kizer had 22 points and 13 rebounds, and No. 12 Maryland used a strong second half to defeat North Carolina State 88-59 on Sunday.
The Terrapins (20-3, 6-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) trailed by 12 with just over 13 minutes elapsed and 39-36 at halftime before storming back to extend their winning streak to seven.
Maryland limited the Wolfpack to 24 percent shooting and 20 points the final 20 minutes.
''A very, very confident, flawless second half,'' Terps coach Brenda Frese said. ''We did a great job on both ends of the floor.''
The victory gave Maryland its seventh consecutive 20-win season under Frese, although this one didn't exactly go as planned.
''We didn't play Maryland basketball in the first half,'' said Kizer, who scored 18 points after halftime.
Myisha Goodwin-Coleman scored 14 for the Wolfpack (10-13, 1-7), who were outrebounded 51-28 and faded miserably after an uplifting start.
''Our team played really well for about 15 minutes,'' coach Kellie Harper said. ''Then our lack of depth and lack of size made it tough on us to continue to play at that level. We have to fight and scrap and claw for everything we get, and you have to play a smart game to be able to compete with Maryland. Unfortunately, we didn't do that.''
North Carolina State couldn't have asked for a better start.
After the Wolfpack took a 21-15 lead, Maryland standout freshman Alyssa Thomas crumpled to the floor at the baseline with lower back spasms that would limit her playing time to seven minutes. Seconds later, Kizer was saddled with her second foul.
It was 33-21 before Kim Rodgers hit a 3-pointer to spark an 11-0 run that got Maryland going. Although 10 different players scored for the Terrapins in the first half, Maryland committed 12 turnovers and shot 40 percent - including 1 for 7 from beyond the arc.
Getting three baskets from Kizer, Maryland opened the second half with a 12-3 run that made it 48-42. It was 55-50 before the Terrapins reeled off 21 straight to turn the game into a rout.
''Our game plan stayed the same,'' Harper said. ''Our execution did not.''
Rodgers finished with 14 points and Diandra Tchatchouang had 11. Despite scoring only three points, Thomas became only the 12th player in school history to reach the 300-point mark as a freshman.
