With nine minutes remaining in the first half, junior Kelly Helvey ignited a flurry of Michigan 3-pointers, and the Wolverines went on to hit three consecutive shots from beyond the arc. Helvey knocked down the wide-open trey from the right wing after sophomore Krista Clement dished her the rock from the top of the key. The team finished the run with four triples over five consecutive trips down the hardwood, giving it an 11-point lead late in the first half.

"I think it was good at any point for (3-point shooting) to be happening because we usually go on a 10-point run and then let them catch up," freshman Carly Benson said. "But this time, we were able to keep the lead for a while, so that was excellent."

The Wolverines lit it up from beyond the arc in their 77-59 win over University of Maryland Eastern Shore last night. For the first time all season, Michigan made more than half of its 3-pointers, draining seven of its 10 treys in the first half alone.

Clement, Michigan's go-to shooter, failed to hit 3-pointer, let alone a field goal all night. UMES's defense focused on containing Clement - who leads the team in both attempted and made 3-pointers - but that left the rest of the Wolverines unguarded along the perimeter. Helvey - who posted a career-high 30 points - went from beyond the arc after the Lady Hawks ignored her as an offensive threat.

"I just kept getting passes from my teammates," Helvey said. "They know I can shoot, and I haven't been shooting lately. I was open, and, if they aren't going to guard me and respect me, then I'm going to shoot it."

Benson, who was 3-for-8 from 3-point range heading into this game, was also left alone beyond the arc. When the Lady Hawks defense collapsed to guard sophomore forward Ta'Shia Walker down low, she would quickly dish the ball outside to Benson for a wide-open trey. Benson, the only freshman starter, went on to finish the game 3-for-5 from beyond the arc.

"(Benson) is just very fundamental," Michigan coach Cheryl Burnett said. "Again, she did a great job of being confident and getting wide-open looks and getting that rhythm jump shot going."

The Wolverines established themselves from beyond the arc in the first three minutes of the contest. In the team's fourth trip down the court, sophomore Janelle Cooper hit Michigan's second trey of the night, draining a wide-open three from the top of the arc after a bounce pass from Helvey.

"We work in practice on getting the ball around and getting the ball to the open players," Cooper said. "When my teammates would dribble penetrate, I would try to spot up (where) I knew the defense wouldn't be."

By the second half, UMES revised its zone - allowing just two 3-pointers on the Wolverines' eight attempts. But by then the damage was already done. Then, Walker hit her only trey - the team's last of the night. The Wolverines sported a 16-point lead and had already sealed a victory with nine minutes left to play.

"When (Benson) came in and stepped up, that's what we need her to do to take those shots," Helvey said. "We were wishing (Clement) would come through and hit those shots. But (Cooper) was excellent, and I think that if we wouldn't have hit those, the score would be something different right now."