From staff and wire reports

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Maryland welcomed No. 6 Boston College to the Atlantic Coast Conference with a slap in the face.

Ekene Ibekwe scored 21 points, Chris McCray had 16, and the 19th-ranked Terrapins ruined the Eagles’ ACC debut with a 73-71 victory Sunday night.

Craig Smith had 23 points and 12 rebounds, and Sean Marshall scored 15 for the Eagles (6-2), who lost to a Top 25 team for the second time in six days. The defeat came on the heels of a loss to No. 14 Michigan State on Tuesday night.

Boston College went 5-for-15 at the line, compared to a 19-for-29 performance by the Terrapins (7-2, 1-0).

The Eagles trailed 73-68 before Tyrese Rice hit a 3-pointer with 2.2 seconds left. After Maryland threw the inbounds pass away, Boston College did the same thing. As the final buzzer sounded, several hundred fans stormed the court to celebrate.

A 5-0 spurt put Maryland up 65-62 with 3:56 left. After Rice made a layup for Boston College, Ibekwe missed two free throws with 2:21 to go.

D.J. Strawberry stole the ball on the other end, and McCray made a three-point play for a 68-64 lead. Then, after Smith made one of two foul shots, a Maryland basket was wiped out by an offensive goaltending call.

Smith then fouled out when called for a charge, and a reverse layup by Nik Caner-Medley put Maryland up 70-65 with 43 seconds left.

The Terrapins held on – but barely.

Maryland led by three points on four occasions during the first 8 minutes of the second half, but the Eagles kept coming back. Then, after BC’s Akida McLain missed an easy layup, James Gist made two foul shots to put the Terrapins ahead 49-45 with 11:05 to go.

Marshall followed with a 3-pointer, Smith made a baseline jumper and Marshall sank one of two foul shots to give BC a 51-49 lead.

There were three ties and five lead changes the rest of the way.

Boston College went 16-for-28 from the floor in the first half, but Ibekwe had 15 points and five rebounds to stake Maryland to a 35-33 lead.

Ibekwe scored 11 points on 5-for-5 shooting to put the Terrapins up 13-8 with 6 minutes elapsed. All his baskets were layups, the result of Maryland’s effort to assert itself inside from the outset.

Boston College then packed the lane, and McCray hit a 3-pointer before Ibekwe drove the lane for a layup to make it 24-18. The Eagles answered with a 6-0 run, but a baseline jumper by McCray and two straight baskets by Caner-Medley restored the six-point margin.

Maryland then missed five straight shots, and Boston College used a 9-1 run to take its first lead since 2-0.

CMCC 80, NMCC 53

PRESQUE ISLE – Kaleb Violette recorded a double-double with 21 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Central Maine Community College to an 80-53 win over Northern Maine Community College.

John Gilson added 16 for the Mustangs (8-5).

Women’s basketball
Mississippi State 80, Maine 55

STARKVILLE, MISS. – Guard Heather Hollis scored a game-high 22 points in a balanced attack as Mississippi State rolled to an 80-55 win over the University of Maine.

Mississippi State (2-5) took a 38-22 lead at the half. Guard Robin Porter contributed 16 points, while forward Natasha Henderson dropped in 12 points.

The Black Bears (2-4) relied heavily on forward Bracey Barker, who had a double-double with a team-high 19 points and 11 rebounds. Barker also recorded four 3-pointers.

UMF 72, UNE 57

WELLS – Kari Simpson poured in 20 of her career-high 28 points in the first half to set the stage for a University of Maine at Farmington, 72-57, victory in women’s basketball action Sunday.

Simpson made 8-of-9 field goal attempts in the opening half, including all four of ther 3-point attempts. She scored 10 consecutive points during a three-minute span as the Beavers (5-1) built a 30-18 lead with 4:35 remaining in the opening half. The Nor’easters came out with a little spark in the second half, slicing the Beavers’ lead to within five on a 20-8 run over the opening seven minutes. Guard Meagan Cyr scored seven of the Beavers’ next 10 points to help regain the momentum.

Forward Melissa Sawyer contributed 14 points, nine rebounds, six assists and five steals in the winning effort.