HOFFMAN ESTATES, ILL. — The last time Maryland's Lexie Brown played a game in the Chicago area, she got into early foul trouble, logged her fewest minutes in a Big Ten game and was unable to settle into an offensive flow in the regular-season finale.
Five days later in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals, the sophomore point guard was the most polished player on the court in directing the fourth-ranked Terps to a 70-60 victory over Michigan State at Sears Centre Arena.
Brown finished with a season-high 27 points on 9-for-16 shooting and matched a career high with seven steals Friday to push the top-seeded Big Ten regular-season champions into the semifinals against No. 4 seed Northwestern. Her fifth game with at least 20 points also extended Maryland's winning streak to 22, a program record for a season.
The Terps (28-2) won 24 in a row bridging 2005-06, when they captured the national title, and 2006-07 for their longest streak overall.
"I just wanted to do whatever it takes to get us to a hot start," Brown said. "It just happened to be me hitting shots. If it was me distributing more or locking down on defense, I'd have done that, but I was getting open looks and I just shot with confidence."
The All-Big Ten first-team selection scored nine points in Sunday's 69-48 win over Northwestern in Evanston, Ill., as Maryland ended the Big Ten regular season undefeated. The Terps are the first to accomplish the feat since Purdue went 16-0 in 1998-99, and the second to go 18-0. Ohio State was 18-0 in 1984-85.
Sophomore center Brionna Jones (Aberdeen) had nine points Friday, as did sophomore Shatori Walker-Kimbrough. The guard-forward added six rebounds and five assists before fouling out with 4minutes, 53 seconds left in regulation.
By that time, the Terps were well on their way to a 27th consecutive win against a Big Ten opponent dating to 2007. Maryland's decisive 17-4 flurry began to unfold immediately after the Spartans drew within 43-37 on Aerial Powers' three-point play with 13:53 to go.
Walker-Kimbrough got it started for the Terps by making one of two foul shots, then Brown made two free throws, and redshirt senior Laurin Mincy scored off an offensive rebound for a 48-37 lead. Michigan State (16-15) made a pair of free throws before Jones had two baskets around a fast-break layup by Brown. Reserve guard Brene Moseley and Brown then combined for six in a row, and Maryland was in front 60-41.
"Our start was really key," said Terps coach Brenda Frese, recently named Big Ten Coach of the Year in the school's first season in the conference after 37 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. "It was something that we really stressed. When you haven't played a game and you have that double bye, just coming out aggressive."
Maryland took a 21-6 lead in the first half, during which Michigan State scored one field goal in the opening 10:38. That included a 12-2 run in which Brown had nine points.