- It was midway through the first half and the Clemson Tigers were accomplishing two daunting tasks.
The Tigers were not only beating Maryland by 15 points, but they also had all but silenced the normally hyped-up Comcast Center crowd. The crowd seemed stunned that the Terps - now 7-0 here in Atlantic Coast Conference games - might finally drop one at home.
But Clemson's success - and the student section's relative silence - did not endure. Led by guard Sean Mosley (20 points) and forward Jordan Williams, the Terps picked up the pace defensively and stormed back for an 88-79 victory to remain undefeated in ACC games in their own building.
It was the fourth straight victory and 10th win in the past 12 games for Maryland.
The Terps (20-7, 10-3 ACC) came back by doing what they do best - pressuring defensively and converting turnovers into baskets.
The Terps, who trailed by nine at the half, tied the game at 63 on a 3-pointer by Mosley, who began the season with a flourish but had not scored in double figures in his previous seven games.
"I was looking for my shot," Mosley said. "After hitting your first shot early in the game, that got me in the flow then and there."
Maryland then took a 70-67 lead on a 3-pointer by Greivis Vasquez, who had just two points - and eight assists - in the first half.
By then, the Terps were rolling.
Vasquez hit Williams for a layup to make it 72-67. "Let's go!" Vasquez screamed moments later with Maryland in front, 77-67.
Vasquez had not been feeling well before the game.
"He took some stomach medicine," Maryland coach Gary Williams said of Vasquez. "He turned it around in the second half for us. We didn't have much room for error the second half."
Vasquez only shot 5-for-13, but he had 13 assists. He even picked up a mop in the second half and wiped up a wet spot on the floor, eliciting laughter and applause. "I didn't want anyone to get hurt," the senior said.
Clemson (19-8, 7-6) closed to 82-77, but the Terps held off the Tigers on foul shots.
Maryland fans chanted "We want Duke" at the end in reference to next week's final home game.
Maryland is 14-1 at home this season. The only loss was 83-77 to William & Mary on Dec. 30.
This was a different Clemson team from the one that had ended a three-game losing streak and shot 31.9 percent in defeating the Terps, 62-53, Jan. 31.
This Tigers team entered with a three-game winning streak and shot the ball much better than before.
Junior guard Demontez Stitt had missed the previous game with a foot injury. He was back Wednesday night and scored 15 points.
Trevor Booker, Clemson's leader, had been recovering from an illness and shot 2-for-16 in the first meeting. Booker was healthy for Wednesday's game, and it showed. He finished with 13 points and 13 rebounds but said the crowd helped Maryland's cause in the second half.
"It was crazy. It was a good crowd," Booker said.
The Terps started quickly, converting four of their first five shots.
Maryland got an early lift from Mosley. He had eight of Maryland's first 12 points and the game was knotted at 12.
Clemson then went on a 19-4 run to take its biggest lead at 31-16.
ACC standings Conf. OverallTeam W-L W-LDuke 11-2 23-4Maryland 10-3 20-7 Virginia Tech 8-5 21-6Wake Forest 8-5 18-7 Florida State 8-5 20-7Clemson7-619-8Georgia Tech 6-7 18-9Virginia 5-8 14-12Boston College 5-8 14-13Miami 4-9 18-9N.Carolina 3-10 14-14N.C. State 3-10 15-13 Wednesday
Florida State 77…N.Carolina 67
Boston C. 80…Virginia Tech 60
Maryland 88…Clemson 79
Today
Tulsa at Duke…7
Saturday
Boston C. at Georgia Tech…noon
N.Carolina at Wake Forest…2
Maryland at Virginia Tech…4
N.C. State at Miami…4 FGFTRebClemsonM-AM-AO-TPts Potter 5-110-01-313 TBooker 5-133-44-1313 Grant 0-20-00-00 Stitt 6-122-23-315 Smith 2-40-03-55 Johnson 3-50-00-18 Young 5-110-01-213 Jennings 2-72-20-27 DBooker 2-41-22-45 Totals 30-698-1019-3979Percentages: FG .435, FT .800. 3-point goals: 11-30, .367 (Potter 3-7, Young 3-9, Johnson 2-3, Stitt 1-2, Smith 1-2, Jennings 1-4, T.Booker 0-3). Team rebounds: 6. Assists: 14 (T.Booker 4, Potter 3, Young 3, Smith 2, Stitt, D.Booker ). Blocked shots: 3 (T.Booker 2, Grant). Turnovers: 15 (Smith 3, Stitt 3, Grant 3, T.Booker 2, Johnson, Young, Jennings, D.Booker). Steals: 7 (Stitt 2, Potter 2, Young, T.Booker, Grant). Personal fouls: 20 (Grant 5, Potter 4, TBooker 3, Smith 3, Jennings 2, D.Booker 2, Young). Technical fouls: None. FGFTRebMarylandM-AM-AO-TPts Milbourne 2-53-40-18 Williams 8-122-52-518 Hayes 6-90-20-315 Mosley 6-86-72-420 Vasquez 5-134-40-215 Bowie 1-20-02-22 Tucker 3-61-20-18 Gregory 0-30-01-50 Padgett 1-10-01-32 Totals 32-5916-2411-3288Percentages: FG .542, FT .667. 3-point goals: 8-13, .615 (Hayes 3-3, Mosley 2-3, Tucker 1-1, Milbourne 1-2, Vasquez 1-4). Team rebounds: 6. Assists: 20 (Vasquez 13, Hayes 3, Mosley 2, Milbourne, Tucker). Blocked shots: 5 (Milbourne 3, Williams, Padgett). Turnovers: 10 (Vasquez 4, Tucker 2, Mosley 2, Milbourne, Bowie). Steals: 7 (Vasquez 3, Mosley 2, Williams, Tucker). Personal fouls: 15 (Williams 4, Mosley 3, Milbourne 2, Vasquez 2, Tucker 2, Gregory 2). Technical fouls: None. Clemson 4831-79 Maryland 3949-88A-17,514. Officials-Sean Hull, Bob Donato, Jim Burr.