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Nelson Helps Rally No. 4 Duke Past Terps

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[January 28, 2008]  COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) -- Facing its biggest deficit of the season in a hostile environment, No. 4 Duke showed its resilience in denying Maryland another upset.

DeMarcus Nelson scored 19 of his 27 points in the second half, Gerald Henderson added 23, and the Blue Devils rallied to beat the Terrapins 93-84 Sunday night.

Duke (17-1, 5-0 ACC) had not trailed by more than six points in any game prior to falling behind 51-42 at halftime. But the Blue Devils fought back in front of a boisterous sellout crowd hopeful of seeing Maryland earn its sixth win in eight games against its hated rival.

James Gist scored 26 and Bambale Osby had 20 points and 15 rebounds, both career highs, for the Terrapins (12-8, 2-3).

Maryland was coming off an 82-80 win on the road against then-No. 1 North Carolina. That was eight days earlier, and unfortunately for the Terrapins, the momentum generated from that breakthrough victory could not be sustained.

Duke led by 2 before baskets by Henderson and Nelson ignited an 8-2 spurt that made it 83-75. A 3-pointer by Gist got Maryland to 84-81, but Nelson made a driving layup for a 5-point cushion with 61 seconds to go.

The Terrapins would get no closer than 4 points.

Duke launched its comeback at the outset of the second half by making three straight baskets, two by Nelson. A three-point play by Nelson got the Blue Devils to 57-55, and minutes later a 3-pointer by Kyle Singler put Duke up 64-63.

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Greivis Vasquez answered with a layup and an off-balance baseline jumper, but Terps reserve David Neal missed a layup and the Blue Devils used a 3-pointer by Greg Paulus and two foul shots by Nelson to move back in front.

The Terrapins would not lead again.

Despite forcing 13 turnovers and getting 16 points from Henderson, Duke trailed at halftime for the first time this season.

The crowd was in a frenzy at the outset, and a quick start by the Terrapins only raised the volume. Maryland made its first four field goal tries, including three straight layups by Osby, and a 3-pointer by Vasquez made it 11-5.

The Terrapins opened 7-for-10 from the floor but had five turnovers in the opening seven minutes and fell behind for the first time when Henderson made two foul shots for an 18-16 advantage.

It was 29-25 before Landon Milbourne hit a 3-pointer to spark a 10-0 run that put Maryland back in front. Gist had two dunks during the 90-second spree.

A technical foul on the Duke bench helped the Terrapins close the half with a 9-2 flurry.

[Associated Press; By DAVID GINSBURG]

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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