Even after 16 days off, fifth-ranked Maryland remains a dominant force.
Brene Moseley scored 12 points and the unbeaten Terps rolled to an 84-36 rout of Lafayette on Wednesday in the first round of the Terrapin Classic.
Maryland (12-0) will play No. 19 Delaware - also undefeated at 10-0 - in the final after the Blue Hens beat East Carolina 60-40 in the other first-round game later Wednesday.
Alyssa Thomas scored 11 points, and Tianna Hawkins had her sixth double-double of the season with 10 points and 13 rebounds for Maryland. Essence Townsend and Lynette Kizer added 10 points each.
Hawkins scored seven points during an opening 11-0 run for the Terps, who later used a 15-0 burst to build the lead to 43-11.
''I really liked the start we had. Given the long break I thought we came out ready to play,'' said Maryland coach Brenda Frese. ''I thought we dictated defensively, which led to our transition game. It was fun to see the energy, effort and unselfishness that we played with.''
The nation's leader in field-goal shooting, the Terps shot 56 percent in building a 51-13 halftime lead. They finished at 50 percent for the game. The Terps also outrebounded Lafayette 55-29 and forced 22 turnovers.
''We knew it was going to be an uphill battle,'' said Lafayette coach Dianne Nolan. ''To Maryland's credit, I think they go from the defensive end to the offensive end as best as I have seen in the country. Their transition is incredible.''
Lafayette (4-8) shot just 12 percent in the opening 20 minutes, scoring a season low in first-half points. The Leopards improved slightly as the game went on and finished at 22 percent shooting overall (13 for 60).
''I thought we had some decent looks in the first half, but nothing seemed to go down. Rebounding was kind of what I expected,'' Nolan said. ''We were up against the top rebounding team in the country.''
Emily Homan led the Leopards with 13 points. Their leading scorer for the season, Danielle Fiacco, made just 1 of 11 shots and finished with two points.
''Their girls are a lot bigger than the girls we usually play and they were bodying us up,'' Homan said. ''I think we need to get used to that and be able to deliver under pressure when someone is pushing you.
''Maryland is one of the top teams in the country. It was fun to be in that arena and to be here. We learned from it.''
The Terps closed the half with a 23-2 run. In the second half, they built their lead to as many as 50 points.
''Our focus was there the whole game,'' Hawkins said. ''We all knew that playing well today was important. I think our entire team played well.''
