Deacons

Dino Gaudio listed all the little things his Wake Forest team did right during its rapid rise to No. 1. Then, he watched his Demon Deacons finally do them again. They ran, they rebounded, they defended - and, not coincidentally, they got two of their most dependable scorers back on track. Jeff Teague scored 27 points, freshman Al-Farouq Aminu added a season-high 26, and No. 7 Wake Forest bounced back yesterday after a surprisingly lopsided loss by routing visiting Boston College, 93-76.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Maybe Maryland will be ready for No. 2 Duke on Wednesday, because the Terps surely weren't mentally prepared for Wake Forest.No. 4 Maryland was on the wrong side of one of the major upsets of the college basketball season yesterday, as the sleepwalking Terps never awoke from a 10-0 deficit and lost, 85-72, to the heretofore slumping Demon Deacons at Lawrence Joel Memorial Coliseum.A 36-point swing from their Dec. 3 meeting at Cole Field House was hardly the manner in which Maryland (19-3, 7-2)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Atlantic Coast Conference's chances of receiving more than three bids to the NCAA tournament were severely dashed yesterday when Robert O'Kelley and Wake Forest disintegrated right in front of 23,895 fans at the Charlotte Coliseum.Wake Forest was easily the league's most marketable choice to join Duke, Maryland and North Carolina in the 64-team NCAA field until slow-starting N.C. State regrouped and thrashed the Demon Deacons, 66-52, in the quarterfinals of the ACC tournament.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- LaMont Jordan returned yesterday to the scene of his biggest humiliation as a collegiate football player and walked jubilantly away with a 17-14 victory over Wake Forest at Groves Stadium."

The hands and feet of God have come to town.More than 1,500 Baptist deacons from 17 states have been meeting this week at Marriott's Hunt Valley Inn, participating in prayer meetings, Bible study and panel discussions on the church's role in solving contemporary problems. They are delegates to the 65th annual gathering of the National Baptist Deacons Convention of America, which wraps up today.In the Baptist church, deacons are lay people who assist a pastor by serving in a ministry."The deacon is a spiritual leader," said James H. Taylor, a member of First Baptist Church in South Richmond, Va., and a past president of the Deacons Convention.

COLLEGE PARK -- Steve Francis said it is just another game.Terrell Stokes knows better.No. 2 Maryland plays at Cole Field House for the first time in 10 days tonight (8, chs. 54, 9) against Wake Forest, and it won't be like the record-setting romp the Terps had in their opener against Western Carolina or the pounding they put on No. 20 Pittsburgh at the Puerto Rico Shootout.This is different. This is the Atlantic Coast Conference, where familiarity breeds close finishes. Even if coach Dave Odom is dealing with a season-ending injury that has disrupted his young team, the Terps know the Demon Deacons will spring something on them.

COLLEGE PARK -- Before No. 2 Maryland opened its Atlantic Coast Conference schedule last night, coach Gary Williams pleaded for kinder, gentler language from the fans in the student section at Cole Field House.His Terps then beat the you-know-what out of Wake Forest.In a performance that proved that an NBA lockout hasn't deprived the nation of breathtaking basketball, Maryland made its first 14 shots, piled up a 28-8 lead and administered a 92-69 whipping before another ravenous sellout crowd of 14,500.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Name that team.This Atlantic Coast Conference program has become a fixture in the NCAA tournament, but it had to replace an All-American who gave it four great seasons. A veteran guard got benched, and the players have been accused of lacking a killer instinct. In a defeat of historic proportions, Duke demolished them on their own floor.That description fits both Maryland and Wake Forest, and if the Terps (10-5, 3-2 ACC) could rebound from a shaky start in the ACC, so can the Demon Deacons.

After watching his team get pounded by Maryland in last night's 92-69 loss, Wake Forest coach Dave Odom thanked Terps coach Gary Williams -- for what didn't happen to his team in the Atlantic Coast Conference opener."

COLLEGE PARK -- The Maryland women's basketball team could have used a breather yesterday. Wake Forest was expected to provide it.But there was nothing of the sort for the Terps, who overcame a 12-point deficit to win, 61-59, before 632 at Cole Field House.When the off-balance, heavily guarded three-point attempt of Heidi Coleman went nowhere, Maryland (9-4, 2-1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference) escaped with an important win before facing three Top 25 teams in the next four games."I'm proud of our comeback," Terrapins coach Chris Weller said.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- It was one thing for Maryland's blitzing defense to bewilder a freshman quarterback in a win over Clemson a week ago. It turned out to be quite another to shut down a poised, senior Wake Forest quarterback who entered Saturday night's game as the Atlantic Coast Conference's hottest passer. If they had any doubt before, the Terrapins now know exactly why Wake Forest's Riley Skinner is on such a roll. Beating blitzes with quick, accurate tosses, Skinner led touchdown drives on Wake Forest's first five possessions in a 42-32 victory over the Terps.

During his four years playing goalie for the Loyola Dons, Akira Fitzgerald had just about as many compliments sent his way as shots. The three-time All-Metro standout - the area's Player of the Year as a senior in 2005 - was quick and agile, determined and vocal, sure-handed and poised. Fitzgerald's finest attribute, many said, was the smart decisions he made while fiercely protecting his penalty area. It turns out Fitzgerald made another wise choice when, after thorough consideration, he decided to play at Wake Forest.

Colleges Perry Hall grad Saunders of UMBC named Rookie of Week For the second consecutive week, UMBC freshman goalkeeper Phil Saunders (Perry Hall) was named Monday the America East Men's Soccer Rookie of the Week. The Retrievers (9-0-0) have the best record in the nation and are ranked 18th in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll released Tuesday. Saunders has recorded four consecutive shutouts and five overall. With five shutouts, he is tied with Boston University's Hrafn Davidsson for the league lead.

Riley Skinner scored on a 1-yard keeper with 2 seconds remaining and host Wake Forest rallied from a 14-point deficit to beat Stanford, 24-17, on Saturday. Skinner finished 18 of 26 for 187 yards with a touchdown pass for the Demon Deacons (1-1). His 44-yard pass to third-stringer Lovell Jackson with less than a minute left set up his winning score. Redshirt freshman Andrew Luck was 23 of 34 for 276 yards with two touchdowns to Ryan Whalen for the Cardinal (1-1). They were denied their first 2-0 start since 2004.

NFL NFL broadens 'Rooney Rule' to include senior posts The NFL has broadened its "Rooney Rule" by requiring teams to interview at least one minority candidate when seeking to fill its senior football operations positions. Commissioner Roger Goodell informed the NFL's 32 member teams by memo Monday of the new requirement, which received strong endorsement after being recommended at league meetings last month. The change is expected to provide minorities more opportunities to fill each franchise's one senior football post, which varies in title from team to team.

Jean Cajou scored 21 points last night as Mount St. Mary's (18-12) won, 72-62, against Wagner (16-14) in the opening round of the Northeast Conference tournament. The Mount hosts Sacred Heart in Sunday's semifinal. Delaware State 74, UMES 60: : Donald Johnson scored a career-high 31 points and the visiting Hornets (8-23, 6-10 Mid-Eastern Athletic) ended a four-game losing streak in the regular-season finale. Neal Pitt had 22 points for the Hawks (7-22, 3-13). Top 25 men No. 11 Villanova 97, Providence 80: : Scottie Reynolds scored 23 points and helped the Wildcats (25-6, 13-5)

Kyle Singler scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half and threw a long pass for a breakaway layup on an inbounds play in the final minute, one of several critical second-half plays for Singler that helped No. 7 Duke withstand a furious rally by host Virginia Tech, 72-65. "It was kind of a football-football thing," Singler said of the pass that sent Greg Paulus, who is also a former quarterback, in for the basket that gave Duke a 68-63 lead with 33 seconds left. Said Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski: "You get a layup at that point, God Bless America."

Gerald Henderson scored a career-high 35 points and No. 9 Duke held on at home to beat No. 8 Wake Forest 101-91 last night. Jon Scheyer added a career high with 30 points for the Blue Devils (22-5, 8-4 Atlantic Coast Conference). They twice led by 22 points in the first half but let the Demon Deacons creep within two points before finally putting them away with a 16-6 run that Henderson keyed. Jeff Teague scored 28 points and James Johnson added 26 for the Demon Deacons (20-5, 7-5). They shot 61 percent but allowed Duke to hit 54 percent of its attempts - the worst performance of the season by the ACC's stingiest defense.

Ty Lawson helped Tyler Hansbrough make it four in a row at Cameron Indoor Stadium, while keeping himself perfect against North Carolina's most despised rival. Lawson scored 21 of his 25 points in the second half, and No. 3 North Carolina rallied past No. 6 Duke, 101-87, last night. Hansbrough scored 17 points - and hit another late three-pointer - for the visiting Tar Heels (22-2, 8-2 Atlantic Coast Conference), who became the first team in nine seasons to hit triple digits against Duke.

Dino Gaudio listed all the little things his Wake Forest team did right during its rapid rise to No. 1. Then, he watched his Demon Deacons finally do them again. They ran, they rebounded, they defended - and, not coincidentally, they got two of their most dependable scorers back on track. Jeff Teague scored 27 points, freshman Al-Farouq Aminu added a season-high 26, and No. 7 Wake Forest bounced back yesterday after a surprisingly lopsided loss by routing visiting Boston College, 93-76.