Terps Trap Foxes, 86-60

Another boring night at Comcast (If you think 26 point wins are boring) as the Terps toyed with Marist early and then put the game away by halftime. The team matches the school's longest winning streak at 21 and is one win away from matching the school record for best start in school history. Five Terps in double figures, led by newcomer Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood (Thanks Pat), who had 17. Marissa, Kristi and Sa'de all made the all-tournament team. The 86 points were the most Marist gave up all year.

Check out the quotes from Marist's coach below. Second coach in three games to rave about the offense.

Recap | Box Score | Quotes | Notes | Photo Gallery

Positives

Sa'de - Three games in and I have yet to see signs of her being a cancer. In fact, I am more impressed with her scoring than anything else. She missed one free throw yesterday and that was it. I also love that she isn't afraid to take the ball to the basket.

Langhorne and Harper - After not playing well on Friday, they did what was asked off them in limited action on Saturday. 8-9 from the floor and Langhorne with a career high six assists.

Coleman - Another perfect night from behind the arc and second in three games. Her all-around game is finally coming together.

Jade - Once again a solid effort off the bench with 8 points and 8 rebounds. She even had a nice foul line jumpshot.

Negatives

Aurelie - I know she's not as good as the other post players, but she has to give more effort than she gave yesterday when she comes in the game. She was getting outrebounded by 5'8 guards and wasn't even trying to box out. We may need her in a key game and she has to give better effort.

Articles

Washington Times

Opponents' Outcomes
Wake Forest lost to Richmond, 67-55
TCU beat North Carolina A&T, 106-84
UNC Greensboro beat Liberty, 67-59
UC Santa Barbara beat Cal St.-Fullerton, 73-71
Gardner-Webb lost to Central Michigan, 77-64
Arizona lost to California, 65-48
George Mason beat Rice, 68-58
Mississippi beat Fordham, 99-43
George Washington beat San Diego St., 76-42
Duke beat Boston U., 71-43
Georgia Tech lost to Mississippi St., 62-56
North Carolina beat Tennessee Tech, 93-52

Game 15: Marist (Terrapin Classic)

For the fifth time this year, the Terps will play on back-to-back days (The ACC Tournament would be the next time this can happen). Thus far, we are 4-0 in those games and today's game features Marist fresh off a win over Liberty yesterday.

Marist is 9-3 and the reigning MAAC champions losing to Georgia in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. There three loses this year have come to Duke (by 21), Villanova (in OT) and Yale (by 15). Our only common opponent has been Loyola, which they beat by 10 (We won by 55 for those that drank too much egg nog over the holidays).

They run a motion offense with a lot of cuts and picks. They also play pretty solid defense as opponents are only scoring 53.3 ppg. In fact, Duke only scored 71 points against them this year. Much of this is as a result of Marist slowing down their offense and then running plays with 15 seconds or less on the shot clock. Our recent three-point shooting prowess will be put to the test as Marist is allowing others to shoot only 20.6 percent from behind the arc.

They are led by 6' forward Rachele Fitz, who until yesterday, came off the bench in every game. She is averaging 14 ppg and shoots 56.4 from the floor while grabbing 5.4 rebounds per game. Meg Dahlman is their other low-post threat with 11.7 ppg (15 yesterday) and shooting 50.9 percent from the floor. She grabs 6+ rebounds per game and leads the team in blocks. She also likes to step out and shoot the 3 at 6'3. Julianne Viani likes to shoot the 3 and is often interchangable with #22 Nikki Flores. Neither one is all that tall, but they can shoot. Their point guard Alisa Kresge doesn't look to score, but rebounds and passes the ball great. She almost had a triple-double yesterday had she looked to score.

Keys to the Game

Marist knows they can play with most teams so they need to be put away early. I can't see them keeping up with us point-wise if it's high-scoring, but a defensive contest will help them out. Pressure the ball every time down the floor to speed up the pace of the game.

Attack the glass - they are getting outrebounded and they aren't using their height to their advantage.

Langhorne and Harper - Both need to be more effective than they were yesterday.

Terps Shoot Their Way Past Spartans, 92-57

Well it looks like the Terps have found their stroke from behind the arc. For the second straight game, they have made at least nine 3-pointers.(This coming after making only 1 against Temple) Yesterday, they made 12 to set the school record (two weeks after the men). Other than that, the game was a bore and the ladies looked bored as well at certain times. The addition of Sa'de now allows Brenda to sub out a whole team as she did yesterday. Everyone scored and there were 6 players in double figures. The win streak is up to 20 (one off the school record) and the 14-0 mark is two off the school's best start.

Recap | Box Score | Quotes | Notes | Photo Gallery

Positives

Sa'de - Two games into her Maryland career and already a career-high in points. She looks smooth out there and really pushes the tempo. The team is still adjusting to her as several times she passed her teammates the ball and they weren't ready. Plus, the team is averaging 101 points with her thus far.

Toliver - The addition of Sa'de has made her more lethal from behind the arc and she is still distributing the ball evenly.

Free Throw Shooting - We missed one out of 25 attempts. Not really much to complain about there.

Coleman - Another high shooting percentage game and almost a double-double. She looks like she is picking her spots on when to take over games.

Jade - Her jumpshot looks great and she looks confident shooting it.

Newman - The slump looks to be nearly over.

Negatives

Defense - The zone looked awful as no one knew where they needed to be and the man-to-man was suspect as we still get beat off the dribble with ease. The Offense hides a lot of mistakes, but we should be playing better defense.

Turnovers - Way too many and many of them were forced turnovers.

Langhorne and Harper - No excuse for shooting a combined 4-11 from the field and grabbing only 9 rebounds. Shay and Coleman outrebounded both of them.

Attitude - We looked to sleepwalk through the beginning of both halves, just like last year.

Opponents' Outcomes
Georgia Tech defeated Alcorn State, 76-54
NC State defeated Alabama State, 74-33
George Mason lost to Florida International, 73-59
Ole Miss lost to Texas-Arlington, 66-55
Clemson defeated Duquesne, 77-74
Temple defeated Penn, 68-49
Virginia defeated UAB, 81-63
Virginia Tech defeated Detroit, 71-57
Miami lost to Auburn,79-61
Duke defeated Dartmouth, 77-40
Northern Iowa defeated Bradley, 74-47

Articles

Washington Post

Washington Times

Up Next
Marist at 6 p.m. today fresh off a 76-43 win over Liberty yesterday.

Game 14: UNC Greensboro (Terrapin Classic)

Holiday break is over and now it's time to finish off 2006 in style and then get ready for ACC season. Tonight at 6 (Not the time change), the Terps take on the Spartans of UNC Greensboro in the annual Terrapin Classic. For the first time in several years the tournament actually features some decent teams as Marist and Liberty were NCAA Tournament teams last year and face off at 3:30.

UNC Greensboro enters the game with a record of 6-4 with one of the losses being a 54 drubbing at the hands of North Carolina. Last year the Spartans went 18-12 and lost in the Southern Conference Tournament. They are averaging 3.7 ppg, but allowing 65.4 ppg. The don't tend to shoot well from the floor as they are under 40 percent on the year and are shooting slightly worse from behind the arc (.319) They are getting outrebounded 39.0 to 36.3 and committing 18.5 turnovers per game. Interesting enough they are averaging 13.5 steals per game.

They are led by 5'7 guard Jasmine Byrd who is averaging 16.7 ppg. She has taken at least 60 more shots than the next person on the team and is the main three-point shooter. She has only missed five of 28 free throws. Their leading rebounder is 5'10 KaLeah Latham with 5.6 per game. She is also second on the team in scoring with 8.7 ppg. The only have two players over 6' tall and those players have seen time in every game, but haven't made a significant impact. Basically the key is to just shut down Byrd and the rest will take care of itself.

For those not in the area, the game is on ACC Select and WMUC (both links available through www.umterps.com)

Keys to the Game

Put the game away early. The football game starts at 8 and I don't want to have to worry about two games at the same time.

Shut down Byrd. She runs the team.

Establish inside presence as we have in the previous games. I want to limit UNC to under 25 rebounds if possible.

Continue to get Sa'de familiar with the offense as we head into ACC season.

Get Newman out of her shooting slump.

Friday Facts

Terps still #1 in the polls and picked up a few first place votes courtesy of Oklahoma's loss last week

The Examiner's Ron Snyder writes about all the high praise the Terps have received.

According to the Washington Post, Brenda was recruiting on Wednesday.

In this month's issue of Women's Basketball Magazine, Maryland was picked as the #1 team to watch while future Terp Marah Strickland was highlighted as one of the Top 10 seniors in the country.

2008 Superstar Chay Shegog talks about the Terps. For Terrapin Times subscribers only.

Terps opponents and how they fared last night:
North Carolina defeated Delaware St, 87-40
Virginia defeated Maine, 86-66
Boston College lost to Harvard, 68-58
Marshall defeated Richmond, 67-66
NC State lost to Nebraska, 94-74
Michigan St. defeated Indiana, 74-49
Virginia Tech defeated Winston-Salem, 43-33
George Washington defeated Georgia, 66-54
Miami defeated Coppin State, 60-54
Loyola defeated Villanova, 61-54
UC Santa Barbara lost to UC Riverside, 70-57
Arizona lost to Stanford, 86-58

The GW and Loyola wins are big for our SOS.

Terps Double Up Greyhounds, 110-55

(Sorry for the delay, had some Christmas shopping to do)

I don't know if Loyola is happy or sad about Thursday's outcome. Reitz Arena was sold out creating traffic delays and causing several of the Rebounders to show up at the game late (I am disappointed in you. What's wrong? never experienced Baltimore traffic before?). Plus, all the money they made off of parking and concessions. But then there was the whole matter of the game, which was close once, when the score was tied 2-2, then the Terps put on a 3/4 court press and extended that lead to 8-2 resulting in Loyola's first time out. At the end of the first 20 minutes, it was 54-32 and the Terps, while not playing their best ball, were in control. The Greyhounds scored first out of the break and then the Terps put it away for good with a 24-1 run to make it 80-35.

Then there was the whole matter of the debut of #2. Yes, she wore her leggins (I believe they are for medical purposes, not religious). No, she didn't start (she was eighth off the bench) and the pigtails were gone (for this game at least). Early impressions: she's fast, she can still shoot and we are averaging 110 ppg with her on the team. Not bad at all.

Win streak extends to 19 (3 for the record and 4 for best start in school history). Also, the team has lost 1 road game in a season and a half. Langhorne also tied her own school record for field goal percentage.

For those wondering, why we only had two coaches on Thursday, here's what I heard: Coach Floyd was recruiting and Coach Walz was waiting to become a father again.

Recap | Box Score | Photo Gallery

Positives

Sade. She didn't try and do too much and was rusty to start, but in the second half she showed what she can do.

Three-point shooting. Loyola played a zone to try and take out the height advantage and the Terps attacked it making 9 of 16. That's great, especially after the 1 we made at Temple.

Jade. She took advantage of her size and scored 15 points, including 9 free throws.

Crystal. She made all her shots, including a jumper. I just wish she would take more jumpers.

Toliver. Her shot looks to be back on track.

Steals. I think that was the most all season.

Negatives

Rebounding. I felt we didn't really attack the boards and take advantage of our height. +16 margin is too small for a team with no 6' players

Defense. We let too much penetration after the press didn't work. Yes, they made some tough shots, but I think we could have played more sound defense.

Turnovers in the first half. Very sloppy play with little communication. Second half was much better.

Articles

Washington Times

Baltimore Sun


Up Next
After a few days of Holiday Fun, the Terps get ready for UNC-Greensboro, then either Marist or Liberty during the annual Terrapin Classic.

Game #13: @ Loyola

It feels like forever since we have played a game and compared to the hectic first part of the season it has been. After playing 8 games in 18 days or whatever it was, the Terps now play 1 game in 18 days (next game is the 29th) so I am hoping for a good performance from the squad.

Also, Brenda may finally get to open the christmas present Pat Summitt sent her last year. Nothing like a speedy point guard named Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood to start (or end) this holiday season with a bang. IT'S OFFICIAL: SHE'S ELIGIBLE TO PLAY TONIGHT!!!

Loyola comes into the game with a 4-5 mark and also a 10-day lay off. The only solid team they have played was Hartford and they lost by 16. Last year, the Greyhounds went 20-10 and lost in the finals of the MAAC tournament to Marist, who we may play in the Terrapin Classic.

Looking at their roster, they have three players at 6' and taller and one of them doesn't play, which means it will be a mismatch on the inside all game long. They are only averaging 64.3 ppg and 36.6 rpg. They tend to take a lot of shots from inside the arc as they have attempted only 70 three-pointers all year. As a team they have blocked 7 shots all year.

The Greyhounds are led by 5'10 guard Jill Glessner. She leads the team in scoring (15.0), rebounding (7.0) and assists (24). As she goes so does the team. Former Terp Vanessa Ruffin holds down the middle at 6'4, but only averages 6.1 ppg and 3.1 rpg. Brittany Dunn is a 5'8 guard who is second on the team in scoring and first in steals. Their main three-point threats are Tynisha Davis, Ashley Alexander and Ebony Toliver (no relation).

The game is on WMUC, but if you live in the area, there is no excuse for you to not be at the game. Chances are this will be Loyola's largest crowd all year and a virtual home game for the Terps.

Keys to the Game

Shaking the rust off early. We should be tired and ready to go, especially since this is the only road game where the team can sleep in their own beds the night before a game.

Getting Sade involved early and in different line ups. I am actually looking forward to seeing her on the court with Toliver, Coleman, Langhorne and Harper.

Put the game away and get ready for the Holiday break. Exams were tough, but we should be ready to go.

Relocate our three-point shooting attack. It's been missing lately, but we will need it once the ACC season starts.

Articles

Baltimore Sun

Washington Times

Baltimore Examiner

Wednesday's Words

Tom Riback writes about how Crystal is ready to lead the team to another title

Nancy Lieberman talks about Sa'de's return to the court

Still No. 1 in all the polls and didn't lose any votes.

Terps now have a RPI of 6 and Strength of Schedule of 29.

For those who haven't heard, Northern Iowa crushed Iowa last night on the road.

Friday Finds

The Examiner writes about Maryland's quiet hero

The Examiner also writes about how the Terps love a challenge

In Maryland's last 50 games they are 46-4. I think Carolina is the only team with a better record.

Thursday's Tidbits

Mark Selig writes a feature about Sa'de and her impact on the team. It even includes a quote from her former coach.

Andrew Zuckerman wonders students still don't come to the women's games.

Tuesday Tidbits

Thanks to umcp77 on the Rebkell board, we find out that the Terps' schedule is ranked 35th in the country and toughest in the ACC thus far.

Still No. 1 in the polls, but we lost points this week. Most likely due to Duke's three huge wins.

Elena Delle Donne, one of the top prospects, if not the top, in the class of 08 has the Terps listed among her final five teams

Monday's Musings

Milton Kent calls Coleman Maryland's Versatile Virtuoso

My buddy Charlie Creme is back and he's talking about the season thus far and releases his first bracket (I counted 13 past and future opponents)

The Terps starting five take up five spots on the Naismith List

Duke's Abby Waner and Virginia's Monica Wright took home the POW honors.

Harper nominated for USSA Athlete of the Year Award and you can help her win by voting for her early and often

Terps Barely Fly Past Owls, 77-66

In a game that was similiar to the season opener as well as many of last year's games, the Terps built a lead and let it slip away, built a lead and let it slip away until the decision was on the line and the Terps did what they do best and took command. The Terps looked lethargic and sloppy as if all the travel finally caught up to them. The defense continues to look solid, except for leaving #30 open for two 3s at the end of the first half, but we tend to want to force passes to create offense when it's not there. It's ok if we don't score 80+ every game, as long as we play smart on offense. Win streak now at 18 and team gets 11 days off.

Game Recap | Box Score

Positives

The defense. Another opponent held under 40& shooting from the field. Looking back I think that's the 15th opponent we have done that too in the last 18 games.

Team's poise. Down 4 in a somewhat hostile place and instead of folding, the team plays harder than before and makes sure victory is theirs. Over the course of the last 50 games, the Terps have lost 4 times and only one of them was by less than 10 points. That loss to Tennessee last year not only gave them confidence, but also looks to have built character that they won't lose anymore close games.

Coleman. Another double-double and again showing that she can't be stopped when she is focused.

Toliver. 9 turnovers isn't great, including some bad decisions, but with the team on the ropes her jumpshot was smooth and right on target.

Free Throw shooting. Looks like the team has been working on this as we continue to get better and better at it, including Langhorne.

Harper and Langhorne. The Philly girls took it to the hoop and dominated their weaker post opponents. We are going to need this combo over the next few weeks.

Negatives

Turnovers. Temple didn't force that many of them. We just made a ton of dumb passes.

Three-point shooting. What has happened to it?

The officials. Coleman was called for 4 fouls, none of which I thought were legit. Meanwhile, Temple was shoving and hooking all night and Maryland only got into the double bonus because the Owls were forced to foul. When Temple made it's run to take the lead, 12 of the 14 points were scored on free throws.

Up Next
10 days of rest. Enjoy it ladies.

Articles

Courier Post

Burlington County Times

Philadelphia Daily News

Philadelphia Inquirer

Game #12: @ Temple

Four days after our last game, we are back on the road again this time at Temple. The game is a homecoming for Lang and Harper and with the busload of Rebounders coming to the game, there should be plenty of red in the crowd this afternoon. Interesting fact: Temple will be the first time we have played a team from a previous opponent's conference (GW is also in the A10). The first 11 games have seen us play teams from 11 different conferences.

Temple comes into the game with a 4-3 record with wins over Georgia Tech, Drexel, Toldeo and Stony Brook, while the losses have against Bowling Green, Virginia and NC State. This game will be a good indication of where we stand in the conference. The Owls have won the A10 tournament the last three years and are coached by former Virginia stand out Dawn Staley.

Looking at their stats, they use an eight-person bench, but their five starters played a majority of the time. They shoot 43% from the field but only 23.7% from behind the arc. In fact only three people on the team have made a 3. The owls only score 65.6 ppg, but allow 62.4 ppg. The turn the ball over at a 16.9 per game clip. I don't really see anything that stand outs for them stat wise.

Their best player is 6' forward Kameisha Hairston who averages 21.4 ppg and 9.9 rpg. She also shoots 79.5% from the free throw line and leads the team in steals. I envision either Harper or Coleman guarding her. Next on the team is Fatima Maddox, a 5'6 guard, who averages 14.0 ppg. She is the main three-pointer shooter, but also leads the team in turnovers, so she must be pressured. She also only grabs a little over 1 rebound per game. Lady Comfort is their 6'2 C and averages 10.9 ppg, but only 6.0 rpg. She doesn't shoot 3s and tends to get in foul trouble. Shenita Landry is their other down low post player at 6'2. She is also foul prone and tends to stick inside the paint. LaKeshia Eaddy is their 5'6 freshman point guard. She doesn't do much except pass the ball and look for steals. They do have two others players at 6'2 or taller that see playing time.

The game is on the radio via umterps.com via the student radio station for those that won't be in attendance.

Keys to the Game

Come out early and put the game away. Could be a hostile environment and Temple isn't a team you can let hang around like UNI and Siena. It will give them confidence as the game goes on.

Rebound.

Keep the ball out of Hairton's hands. She runs the team and the less chances she has, the better chance we have of disrupting their flow.

Take care of the ball.

Articles

Philadelphia Inquirer

Baltimore Sun

The Diamondback

Terps to Featured on Iowa Sports Weekly

Thanks to FridgeFan on Terrapin Times for alerting me to the following information regarding the Terps being featured on Iowa Sports Weekly.

The show which focus on Iowa Sports has already posted a 54-picture photo gallery and Coach Frese and the team will be featured on their show next week (Tues at 7:30 p.m., Weds at 7 p.m. and Sat at 8:30 a.m. on Channell 22 for all the Iowans). For those of us that don't live in Iowa, I am trying to get a web version of the episode so you can all watch.

If you want to learn more about the show visit their website or watch their promo video.

Thanks again FridgeFan!

Terps DeFang Panthers, 77-33

Another night, another great defensive effort. After an 8-point (yes 8-points) first half, which included the Terps going on a 20-0 run to end the half, the only question for the rest of the game was whether UNI would break Maryland's school record of 22 points allowed in a game. Alas, Brenda decided to rest some of the starters (if she rested all of them we would be playing 4 on 5) and UNI scored 33 points, matching the effort by George Mason last year. Everyone scored but Newman, who was in a bit of foul trouble, and we shot 55% from the floor. Brenda received a proclamation before the game from the Governor. Win streak now up to 17 and we get a whole three days off between games.

Game Recap | Box Score

Positives

Another outstanding defensive effort. Anytime your opponent's final score is less than what you scored in the first half it's a positive.

Lang's free throw shooting. 3-for-3 on the night, looks like she may have found her touch.

Three-point shooting. UNI had given up only 14 3's all year and we had five on the night.

Jade. 11 rebounds and six points. Good to see the first half benching isn't affecting her.

Newman. Despite being held scoreless, she had six steals and seven rebounds.

Negatives

Turnovers. 16 is too many, but at least it's not 20.

Up Next
at Temple on Sunday at 2. They are 4-3 and coming off a 14-pt win over Stony Brook on Wednesday.

Articles

Des Moines Register

Des Moines Register

Diamondback

Game #11: @ Northern Iowa

Today is game nine in a span of 19 days and the fourth different city during that span. The schedule is ridiculous, but it will only make the team better prepared for the postseason. First-ever trip to Northern Iowa and I am pretty sure we will face a huge crowd. The game can also be listened to and watched through Northern Iowa's website.

The Panthers are 2-4 with wins over Miami (OH) and Illinois-Chicago. They have lost to Minnesota, Weber State, Iowa State, Washington. The losses to the teams from the power conferences have been somewhat close including a 6-pt overtime loss to Iowa State.

Looking at their roster, they don't seem to have a ton of height with only four players at 6' and taller and none taller than 6'1.

They are led by 6' forward Tara King, who does a little bit of everything for them. She's averaging 20 ppg, nearly 7 rpg, and shoots it well from behind the arc. It looks like she is their main three-point threat. Next is Jessie Biggs, who I gather is their point guard, and is second on the team with 14 ppg and leads the team with 6.8 rpg. She is also nearly automatic from the FT line, having only missed 3 all season. Lastly there is Megan Keefe, a 6'1 forward who is prone to foul trouble. She's averaging 11 ppg, but only 3.3 rpg.

Everyone on the team has shot at least one three-pointer, so we have to be prepared for that. They tend to turn the ball over a lot, just not as much as we do (or have in the past). Judging by their opponents' three-point shooting percentage (.192), I gather that they play a zone and force teams to shoot.

Keys to the Game

Establish our inside presence. UNI seems content to stay outside the paint and we need to attack that area to take them out of their zone.

Handle the crowd. I expect that we will face a crazy crowd like at MTSU, but this time we need to handle it better.

Get that early lead. 3 games in six days is a lot, and a big lead will allow us to rest players more frequently.

Guard the three-point line. With everyone on their team capable of shooting a 3, we can't be lazy on defense.

Articles

Des Moines Register

Baltimore Sun

Globe Gazette

Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier

Northern Iowan

The Diamondback

USA Today - Talks about Marissa and SWG

Tuesday Tidbits

The NCAA is considering changing March Madness to Awesome April. The whole tournament would be pushed back a week. I hate it.

Terrapin Times did a story and a photo gallery for the game featuring Anjale Barrett and Marah Strickland.

Still ranked #1 in all the polls and picked up points in the coaches' poll, but we are still getting a third-place vote.

Terps Turns Saints into Puppies, 93-54

In a game that was a lot closer than anticipated, Maryland finally clamped down on defense and put away a pesky Siena team last night. I started to worry as Siena just kept throwing up shots and our girls look disinterested in playing last night. Then Siena took the lead for the last time and the team responded with a run to end the half and start the second half. In the first 13 minutes, Siena scored 26 points, in the final 27 they scored 28. I think we can figure out when the defense turned it on. Give Siena credit, they showed no fear and made us work early on. They didn't play any defense, hense our ridiculous shooting percentage for most of the game, but they stayed with us for most of the first half, which I didn't think would happen.

Game Recap | Box Score | Quotes | Notes | 
Photo Gallery 1  | Photo Gallery 2 

Positives

The cutdown on turnovers in the second half. We played more in control in the second half and that resulted in only 1 turnover.

Newman. She continues to hustle all the time and do all the little things.

Jade. She didn't play in the first half and I have no idea why, but after she settled down in the second half, she finished with 7 and 7.

Langhorne's FT shooting. At least for a night, it looked to be on the right track.

Coleman's vision. Back-to-back games of double digit assists and she's cutting down on her turnovers.

Negatives

Lack of focus to start the game, which affected the team's defense.

Up Next
Weds. at Northern Iowa at 8 p.m. (EST). They are 2-4 coming off a 16-point over UIC.

Articles

Baltimore Sun

Washington Times

The Diamondback

Coleman Wins Player of the Week

In the no brainer move of the week: Marissa Coleman named ACC POW. I was afraid Larkins may share the honor after 17 and 12 against Tennessee, but the voters made the wise choice.

Game #10: Siena

Two days after the team's most complete performance of the year, they are back in action. This time against the Siena Saints, who are 1-6, and were blown out by us last year to start the season.

No scouting report today as if Siena gives us much of a game, the pregame talk the team had before UCSB was a waste in my opinion.

This should be a drubbing and a triple-digit game, unless of course Siena takes the air out of the ball to make the game look more respectable.

Siena Stats | Siena Roster

Terps have "Triple" the fun against the Gauchos.

What a night at the Comcast Center. First triple-double in school history and second triple-digit scoring game of the year. This was the best I have seen the team play all year and they play like this for every game, look out, as everyone else is playing for second place. I honestly didn't expect to win by 60, UCSB isn't that bad, but I was impressed. Another opponent held under 50 this year, that's five for those counting at home. (Who said you its M-A-R-Y-L-A-N, because they play no D). Aside from that we had Marissa filling up the stat column and six players in double figures. Oh and the winning streak is extended to 15.

Game Recap | Box Score | Quotes | Notes | 
Photo Gallery  | Photo Gallery 2 

Positives

Fewer than 10 turnovers. Only 3 in the second half. Some of the turnovers were charges too, I think I counted maybe 4 or 5 bad turnovers.

Coleman. What can you say about her that hasn't been said. With 8 minutes to go, she had 9 rebounds, 8 assists and 4 points. Over the next four minutes, she had 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 11 points. I think we have a ACC Player of the Year in our future.

Harper. rebounded from an 0-fer in Marshall to lead all scorers with 19 points. Glad to see she didn't let it affect her too much.

Newman. I really like what I have seen from her this year. She's more confident in her offensive game and she is really attacking the glass on both ends of the court.

Rebounding. Coleman nearly outrebounded them with 14. I was shocked to see 51-17 was the rebounding margin.

Negatives

Crystal's Free Throw shooting. Looks like we are back to Crystal's freshman year form. Hopefully she finds her touch by January.

Articles

Washington Post

Baltimore Sun

Up Next
Siena on Monday at 7. Siena is 1-6 and coming off a 17-point loss to George Mason yesterday.

Game 9: UCSB

After nearly two weeks away from home, the Terps are back in action against the University of California at Santa Barbara or UCSB for short. This is the first of two home games before another road trip. The win streak is up to 14 now and here's hoping it continues.

UCSB is out of the Big West conference and had made the NCAA tournament nine years in a row before losing by 1 in the conference tournament. They then lost in the first round of the WNIT to Fresno State. UCSB enters with a record of 1-4 and losers of four straight. They have played a tough schedule as the win came against Portland State and the losses have come to UCLA, Oregon, Louisville and NC State. They have been in most of these games, so it's not like they are a pushover opponent.

As a team they are averaging 69.6 ppg and shooting 40.8% from the field. From their stats it looks like they shoot well from the three-point line. They seem to have a smaller bench than us as six players are averaging 20 minutes or more and the other four that play are all under 10 minutes.

Their star player is 5-10 guard Jessica Wilson, who is averaging 18.4 ppg and 5.4 rpg. She is shooting 40% from the field and 38.5% from behind the arc (she's only taken 13 three-pointers) and 80% from the free throw line. She leads the team in steals and assists, but tends to get in foul trouble as evidenced by her 18 fouls in 5 games. Their leading rebounder is 6-4 center Jenna Green with 8.8 per game. She shoots about 58% from the floor (I am guessing lay ups mostly) and is only averaging 1 block a game (odd for a 6-4 post player). LaShay Fears and Jordan Franey are their 3-point threats as nearly half their FG makes this year have been from behind the arc. They are 5-7 and 6-0, respectively. Whitney Warren, a 5-8 guard, is second on the team in rebounding with 6.3. They have a 6-3 frosh center who comes off the bench, while their other 6-4 player is out for the season rehabbing an injury from last year.

Keys to the Game

More energy than on Wednesday. Maybe the travel got to the girls, but I don't expect to see another sleepwalking effort.

Take care of the ball. We haven't had a game with fewer than 10 turnovers this year. Stop forcing it so much.

Continue to get better from behind the three-point line.

Get their post in foul trouble. To go from a girl who plays most of the time to a freshman will really open the lane.

Lock down on Wilson. She's their best player and needs to be contained.

Friday Fun Facts

Future Terps Marah Strickland and Anjale Barrett will square off on Saturday night at 8 p.m. at TC. Since most of you will be at the Terps' game, you can see them in action again on Sunday at 11 and 1. (They won't be playing each other again)

CSTV looked back at the month of November and essentially felt the Terps are still no. 1 because that's the way they started the season. Essentially they haven't played anyone, turn the ball over too much and aren't winning by enough. Looks like the author just looks at boxscores and doesn't watch games.

Here are some of the articles from the Marshall win:

• Diamondback
  
• Charleston Daily Mail
  
• Charleston Daily Mail
  
• Huntington Herald Dispatch
  
• Huntington Herald Dispatch

Terps Run Away from Herd, 68-49

To be honest, I followed the game on GameTracker, when it worked, and through ESPN.com's scoreboard. This game was closer than expected and since I didn't see it I can't say whether it was all the travel recently or just pure boredom. We never trailed which is a good thing, but to go from the most points in the season to the fewest in one game is unsatisfactory. The win streak improves to 14, longest in both men's and women's hoops, and now the girls get over a week at home before they hit the road again.

Recap | Box Score |  Notes

Positives

Marissa and Kristi look to be emerging from their scoring slumps, which is great to see.

Defensive play. We held them to 30.6% shooting and only 49 points, 10 of which came in the final 3:35.

Rebounding. Another 50+ rebounding game, our third of the season.

Negatives

Harper - 3 fouls, 0 points? Where was she tonight?

Turnovers and Free throw shooting

Overall shooting. we should never go 7 minutes without a FG with the firepower we have. 37.5% isn't going to win many ACC games.

Ability to create turnovers. The articles says we pressed yet they only had 13 turnovers and 4 of them were off steals. I don't understand how we have 21 turnovers against teams that don't press, yet we press and nothing happens.

Up Next
UCSB on Saturday at 7 p.m. The Gauchos are 1-4 with all four losses coming against teams from the big conferences. They last played on the 26th so they will be well rested when they hit College Park.

Game 8: at Marshall

Another day, another game for the Terps, this time in Huntington, WV. I have no idea why we are playing this game, as none of our players are from West Virginia, but their coach said this game has been in place for a while. This is the first time a No. 1 ranked team has played at Marshall and second-straight year they have played the defending National Champions. They are really rolling out the red carpet for us as Brenda spoke at a luncheon today on campus.

Marshall is 5-1 but it's all against teams on their level or below. Their lone loss was by 11 points to Monmouth, who we spanked last year. They are averaging 64.2 points per game, while allowing 57.7. They are shooting 42% and opponents are shooting 33%. They don't shoot many 3s and their free throw shooting is awful. Check out their stats to see for yourself.

Their leading scorer and second leading rebounder is 6'2 C Modupe Ishola who is averaging 13.5 ppg and 8.3 rpg. Judging from the stats, she shoots a ton of layups. Two interesting facts: she has picked up 24 fouls in 6 games and hasn't fouled out, meaning she always is in foultrouble; she has only two blocked shots this year. 6'3 Chantelle Handy starts on the front line with Ishola, but she is averaging less than 5 ppg. Meg Withrow is their three-point shooter, having taken the most at 15 and making six of them. Kendra King is the leading rebounder with 8.5, while only being 6'

Keys to the Game

improve on the three-point shooting from last game.

lockdown defense. I would like to see Marshall held to 40 or lower

taking care of the ball.

dominating from the start as always.

Articles

Diamondback

Tuesday Tidbits

The polls are out and we are still #1 in all of them including Tracy Schultz's Power Poll.

Harper took time out of her busy schedule to blog from the Bahamas.

They finally posted Brenda's ESPN the Magazine article online, but you need a premium account to read it.

The Diamondback wrote about the Junkanoo Jam Tournament

Terps Push Back Rebels, 110-79

Another game, another double-digit win. Looks like that MTSU game woke the team up and now has them putting teams away early and often. I expected a win, but nothing like this. Most points scored in a road win in 18 years. Shay was the MVP, Langhorne had a double-double and all 5 starters were in double figures. The defense could have been better, but Ole Miss shot only 37.2% and were outrebounded by 20. Can't complain too much about that.

Game Recap | Box Score

Positives

All-out dominating performance. Who knew it would take an SEC school for us to break 100 this year? I also liked that it sends a message that we aren't only beating up on smaller conference teams.

Spreading the ball around. This has to be our third or fourth 20+ assist game this season. I like the teamwork being showed.

Negatives

Too many turnovers.

Three-point shooting. Last year we were just as automatic from outside as we were inside. We seem to be struggling a bit.

Next Up
Marshall, who is 5-1 and coming off a third-place finish at the Caribbean Classic.

Game 7: Mississippi (Junkanoo Jam)

Second game in as many days for the Terps who should be used to this at this point. The team should be well rested as many of the starters played very little in the second half of yesterday's blowout win. The win moves us to 7-0 and I think the best start since 1990-91.

Ole Miss is 5-1 and from the SEC. They have played essentially no one thus far and after scoring 90+ in their first four games, they have scored 79 and 61. Last year they went 17-13 and lost in the second round of the WNIT.

Their star player is Armentice Price, who is an All-American candidate. She is like Coleman as she can play different positions on the floor and does a little bit of everything. She doesn't shoot a ton of 3s and her free throw percentage is 57.4% They have six players that are 6' or taller. the one thing I noticed yesterday is that they only have one player that spends time in the post on offense.

They like to run the ball up and down the court, but Northwestern forced them to slow things down yesterday. They are averaging over 50 rebounds a game. They don't shoot well from 3 and their free throw percentage isn't that great. From what I watched yesterday, they played mostly an extended 3-2/2-3 zone. They liked to trap out of the zone if the players went to one side of the court or the other. NW attacked the zone with cuts through the zone and quick pas outs to open shooters.

Keys to the Game

Take care of the ball. Ole Miss likes to trap and create their offense from steals. Fewer turnovers = fewer fast break baskets.

attack the post. Like I mentioned they don't seem to play with many true post players, so the quick we attack the paint and gt them in foul trouble, the quicker we get them out of sync.

Hit our three-point shots. The only way to bust a zone is to hit from the outside.

Keep their players in front of us. We tend to be easily taken off the dribble and we need to prevent that.

Terrapins Take Bite out of Bulldogs, 83-41

Once again the game was a complete bore (not that it's a bad thing) as we scored I think the first 12 points and were rolling at halftime 45-10. The only question in the second half was how many points would we hold GW to. Unfortunately, the refs found their whistles at halftime and started calling everything to start the half. Then #11 started heating up and GW was only outscored by 7 in the second half. It looked like we went on cruise control again and could you blame the team? They were up by 35 at half.

Game Recap | Box Score | Photo Gallery  | JUNKANOO JAM GALLERY

Positives

First half defense. Any time you hold a team to 10 points in a half, you are doing a great job. We contested every shot and attacked the glass.

The return of Coleman. It took nearly 30 minutes, but we finally saw Marissa emerge from her slump. She grabbed rebounds and went strong to the hoop.

Negatives

Langhorne's free throw shooting. It has to get better as we get closer to ACC play.

Three-point shooting. For some reason we don't seem as automatic from behind the arc as we were last year.

Marrone's turnover issue. She's making too many dumb mistakes and that needs to improved before Sa'de is eligible.

Up Next

Mississippi - Almost blew a huge lead against Northwestern yesterday, but won in the end 61-58 to improve to 5-1

Game 6: Gardner-Webb (Junkanoo Jam

After two days of fun in the sun, the Terps get down to business tonight looking to capture their second tournament in as many weekends. Tonight we play Garnder-Webb out of the Atlantic Sun conference. They enter the season with a record of 2-2 with wins over Montreat and South Carolina State. Based on their stats this game should be just like the Mason game. GW is shooting a little over 20 % from behind the arc and 35% overall. They only score 53.8 points per game and turn the ball over 20+ times. Looking at their roster, they have two players over 6' and neither of which has played yet. Their best two players are Shameka Smith and Brittany Harmon, which average double-digit point and eight rebounds per game. Both of them are post players and don't shoot from behind the arc.


Keys to the game

End the game early. If Ole Miss wins they like to run the floor and we will need fresh legs as that will be the fifth game in eight days.

Take care of the ball. I hope the 20 turnover games are behind us now.

Get Toliver and Coleman back in rhythym. Looks like sophomore slumps for both of them at this point, but this is a game where they can get back on track.

Remember if you aren't watching the games live, you should be able to listen to them via umterps.com (There is also a GameTracker link - so that may work too).

Happy Thanksgiving

I hope everyone is enjoying thanksgiving and having a great day. I bet most of you are also being thankful for the Natty from last april.

Here's some other things to ponder after eating dinner:

Still No.1 in every poll. We picked up a first-place vote in the Coaches Poll and a vote in the AP Poll.

Kay Yow, Debbie's sister, is taking a leave of absence to battle cancer. Let's all wish her luck with that.

The Diamondback previews the weekend tournament

Terps Put Down Colonials, 73-48

Another game, another blowout. Although this one was a little tougher to blow out as GW hung with us for much of the first half, before we turned on the D and ended the half on a huge run. I was pleased that the gme wasn't that easy at the start and that we had to fight early on. No all games are going to be over by the 10 minute mark of the first half. The team is now on an 11-game winning streak and the 5-0 start is the best in the Frese era.

Game Story Box Score | Quotes |  Notes |  Photo Gallery  |  Photo Gallery 2 

Positives

Handling adversity - Like I said earlier, I liked the fact it wasn't a blowout from the start and that we had to work the whole game. It will be a great test for later in the season.

Rebounding - GW had the height to match us and we outrebounded them by 23.

Cutdown on Turnovers - Many of the turnovers were from walks and offensive fouls. I didn't see as many dumb passed as I had seen in previous games.

Shay - I really like how she is playing to start the season. She looks better than she did last year and seems to let the offense come to her.

Defense - we held them under 35% shooting before the game. It was a great all around effort. Our three-point defense needs to get better, but we can work on that.

Negatives

Coleman's tentativeness - Since the MTSU game, she hasn't been very aggressive and I don't know if it's because of her injury during the TCU game. We need Coleman to show the flashes she showed during the Final Four and MTSU.

Langhorne's free throw shooting - She looks to be regressing back to freshman year form which could result in Hang on Lang tactics.

Next Up

Junkanoo Jam against Gardner-Webb and then either Ole Miss or Northwestern. We have never played any of the teams, but we should beat GW handily and the other game may be tougher depending on the way the two teams play. I think NW plays a slow-down pace, while Ole Miss plays uptempo.
It doesn't look like the games will be on TV, so for those not attending the tournament you will have to listen to them via umterps.com or the Terrapin Sports Radio Network.

Game #5: George Washington

Third game in three days and I think the bloggers are as tired as the players at this point. GW is 4-0 having won the previous two games with late game runs. This is the first time in a long time we have played them as for some reason GW has a love affair with Pat Summitt.

In the two games, I have seen GW I have been impressed with their refuse to lose attitude and nothing more. They seem to be slightly better than the other two teams, but not worlds better as I had previously thought. They are led by 6-4 center Jessica Adair, 5-11 guard Sarah-Jo Lawrence and 5-8 guard Kimberly Beck. Adair is wider than most centers we have played thus far so she may be not easily pushed around in the paint. That being said, she is prone to foul trouble. Her back up has a solid jump shot, but I am not sure if either one can handle guarding both Langhorne and Harper. Beck is a fiesty point guard who isn't afraid to shoot it from the outside. Lawrence can fill up the box score in many ways.

Keys to the Game

Put them away early.

Take care of the ball.

No late game letdown.

Get them into foul trouble early.

Articles

Baltimore Sun

Other News
Virginia's Takisha Granberry and Denisha Kenion have left the team.

Terps Declaw Wildcats, 75-61

Another ho-hum game at the Comcast Center. Make a big run to start the game and then coast to victory. While everyone who was at the game knows it's a blowout the voters may not when they see the score. I know we need rest, but I wish Brenda would call the dogs off with 5 minutes left and not with 15.

Game Story | Box Score | Quotes |  Notes

The postives and negatives are the same as yesterday.

Next Up
George Washington - which has struggled in its last two games to win.

Game #4: Arizona (BTI Classic)

I feel like we just played a few hours ago and now we have to battle again. It will be interesting to see how the team bounces back after playing yesterday. A win puts us in the "championship game".

Arizona looks to be a little improved from last year when we crushed them. They added some height in the paint, but they look young and inexperienced. They have a 6'6 girl who for some reason yesterday kept taking fadeaway jumpers and was very foul prone. Same went for #32. According to their roster they have two sets of twins on the team. Their guards are a little quick and #12 likes to play in your face defense. They also aren't afraid to shoot the three. One thing I did notice is that they lack a killer instict as they were outscored 10-3 in the final minutes yesterday to lose to GW.

Keys to the Game

Pound them early and often - We need to keep up this run of coming out of the gates hot and putting the other team on it's heels.

Attack the paint - Their post players aren't that great so we should be able to score at will and get them in foul trouble.

Guard the perimeter - They like to shoot the 3, so we need to step out and guard it.

better free throw shooting.

take better care of the ball. No stupid turnovers.

Articles

Arizona Star

Baltimore Sun

Terps Squash Frogs, 82-64

The score was no indication of how lopsided this game was. The Terps came out on fire to start the game and led by as many as 40 before getting sloppy and going on cruise control. Career-high for Harper with 27 points. Only scare during the game was Coleman's hard fall about 10 minutes in. She walked off the court, but was wearing an ice pack the entire second half. Probably won't see her unless we need her tomorrow. Disappointed in the crowd, but the men were getting ready to tip off so I figured that's where most of them were.

Recap | Box Score | Quotes | Notes

Positives

Start of the game intensity - for the third straight game we went right at a team and built a huge lead. For the second straight game, we didn't let up until the other team had no chance.

Harper - she played like a beast tonight, hitting jumpers, blocking shots and playing defense.

Toliver - her passing was so smooth tonight it was fun to watch. That block she had was even better.

Defense - I think we played great defense for 30 minutes. We stepped out on screens, defended entry passes, etc. It was fun to watch.

Team ball - 27 assists on 31 baskets.

Negatives

Turnovers and FT shooting - seems to be a recurring theme.

Letting up. I realize we have more games to play this weekend, but I didn't like how we relaxed and didn't show any pride when TCU kept chipping away. Voters won't realize it was a blowout.


Next Up
Arizona - lost to GW today after having a lead with 4 minutes to go. Will preview them tomorrow morning.

Game #3: TCU

The Horned Frogs come into the BTI Classic having not played a game yet. I have no idea why they would wait so long to play a game, but I guess their coach didn't feel it necessary to reschedule games when the NCAA announced games could now start a week earlier. They went 19-11 last year and 11-5 in the Mountain West Conference.They advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament before being trounced by Rutgers.

I don't know much about the team, but I seem to remember that they focus on the defensive end similar to MTSU. They caused nearly 20 turnovers a game last year including 10 steals. They weren't the greatest shooting team especially from behind the arc and they were outrebounded.

They're leading scorer and rebounder from a year ago is gone, but the next three all return. There roster shows that they have height, but it looks like only Jenna Lohse saw real action.

Keys to the game

Dominate from the start. Three games in three days with a limited bench could take its toll if everyone has to play 30+ minutes. I hope we can rest the starters early and often.

Take care of the ball. If TCU presses like I think they will, we need to be able to handle it and score buckets in transition.

Wednesday Wrap Up

The polls came out again earlier this week and we took a bit of a hit based on the MTSU game. We lost first-place votes in each and a few people are voting us third. I guess they want to see domination everynight. Also didn't help that MTSU lost to South Dakota State.

Nice column by Mike Wise of the Washington Post yesterday.

Also there are articles about Brenda in the latest issues of ESPN the Magazine and Sports Illustrated. SI has us picked #1 and Langhorne first team All-America. I can't find the links to the articles, so you may have to go out and buy them. Sorry.

Maryland Crushes George Mason, 99-43

They game turned out exactly as I figured it would. Mason hung around for a while, but then Maryland took control and put them away. For the second straight year, GMU went over 10 minutes without a field goal. 6 players in double figures, one of which wasn't Marissa Coleman, and everyone scored at least 2 points. We just have too many weapons and once we perfect playing defense we could be raising another banner this time next year.

Game Story | Box Score | Quotes | Photo Gallery

Postives

Balanced scoring - 6 different scorers and shooting over 60 percent.

Marrone - After a poor effort on Friday (maybe it was jitters) she seemed more in control yesterday and looks to be like a great shooter from behind the arc.

Coleman - Yesterday she must have decided she was going to pad her assist totals because she wasn't looking to score at all. I think she gets a triple-double before the year is out.

Ball distribution - 28 assists on 38 buckets is simply remarkable and shows how much team ball they play.

Negatives

Turnovers - Brena was happy with the 16, but a bunch of them were just dumb passes that we shouldn't be making with so many returnees.

Free Throw Shooting - We only missed six, but I would prefer fewer misses, especially if we only get 22 attempts.

Halftime Rap Concert - What the hell was that?

Articles

The Diamondback

Baltimore Sun

Washington Post

Baltimore Examiner

Next Up
Three games in three days vs. TCU, Arizona and GW

Game 2: George Mason

After that nail-biting win on Friday, we hit the floor again today against local opponent George Mason. The game isn't really that important as we should beat them handily considering we won 70-33 last year and they went over 10 minutes without a bucket. Their roster shows that they have some height, but most of them played against us last season. They have three additions to the team: former Terp C'Vette Henson, Rashauna Hobbs (5'6 G) and Becky Rautzhan (6'3 C).

Last year they went 12-17. They had one player in double figures, shot under 40% from the floor and were outrebounded. The three new players should have an impact, but not enough to make this game close, I hope.

The big story about today's game is the unveiling of the championship banner, which looks like it's going opposite the men's banner on the other side. We have all waited since April for this moment and let's hope that we aren't the only fans in attendance. I heard season ticket sales are up, I just want to see us break at least 8,000.

Keys to the Game

Dominate the game from start to finish. There's no reason this game should be close.

Take care of the ball. I hope Friday was the last time all season we have 20+ turnovers in a game.

Articles

Washington Times

Terps Outlast Raiders, 80-76

Well it wasn't pretty, but we got the job done again. They love to give us all heart attacks before putting the game away. One game they will play defense for 40 minutes like they do when the game is on the line. The game had so much promise with a 15 point lead near the end of the first half, but then foul trouble (must be the year of the charge) resulted in different line ups and a ton of turnovers. As a result, MTSU got more confidence and took it to the Terps. We looked a little shocked, but when the game was close to getting out of reach the defense stepped up. The team gave up 10 points in a 2-minute span and then held MTSU to one bucket over the the final 5:14 of the game (the bucket at the buzzer doesn't count). One day teams will guard Toliver with the game on the line too. Kudos to brand new Associate Head Coach Jeff Walz for picking up I think his first career Technical.

Box Score | Game Recap

Positives

Marissa -- 19 and 15 and single-handily tried to take over the game, when the team was struggling. She filled up the box score,now she needs to fix the free throw shooting.

Langhorne -- another quiet 16 and 11 night missing only two shots in the process. Plus when they needed a big rebound and a bucket, she was in the right spot.

Team's resistence to lose -- champions don't lose games they should win and that's what they did last night.

Rebounding -- the team attacked the glass and controlled the boards.

Perimeter defense -- MTSU scored 28 points in the paint and shot 36.4% from the floor.

Negatives

Turnovers -- way too many again. It looked like we had never played against a press before. This game should have never been that close, even the box score indicates that, but we kept throwing the ball away for no reason.

Free throw shooting -- 72% is good, but we missed several key shots and that can't happen in close games.

Harper -- she played great when in the game, but she has to do a better job of staying out of foul trouble.

Composure -- I know the refs stunk and it was hurting the team, but they have to be ready to withstand runs. They gave up at least two of 10 points or more.

Articles

Washington Post

The Tennessean

Photos

Langhorne and Coleman named All-American by ESPN.com

Langhorne made the first team and Coleman made the second team of ESPN.com's All-America teams. Good to see Marissa getting early season hype considering how well she played in the Final Four.

Game 1: at Middle Tennessee State

Here we go again, another season opener on the road. This game may be a little tougher than last year's game against Siena as it will be against a team that has made the NCAA tournament three years running and pulled off upsets in two of those years (ironically it was against UNC and NC State). We are working on a six-game winning streak and I am hoping that extends to at least 40 by this time next year.

MTSU went 20-11 last year and won the Sun Belt. The only common opponents we had last year were Virginia and Utah, which they both lost too. Their head coach is in his second year as he was Ashleigh Newman's coach in high school four years ago. Looking at their roster they have five players 6' and taller, but no one bigger than 6'2. In their exhibition game, they started a line up with a little bit more height than we normally start. They won that exhibition game 102-58. They also have some depth as two of their players off the bench were among the team's leading scorers. Chrissy Givens is the star of the team and is an all-American candidate. She can do it all in the same vein as Marissa as in the exhibition game she led the team in rebounding, assists and steals. Two newcomers also fared well in the exhibition as Amber Holt, who committed to Georgia, but is now at MTSU, and Brandi Brown came off the bench to score in double figures. Both are tall players who tend to stay away from the paint. Brown is a three-point shooter, while Holt looks to be more of a slasher. Judging from last year's stats they tend to shoot a lot of threes, are decent from the free throw line, and don't block many shots. It's hard to get a read on them based on new personnel and stats. Honest assessment is that they are a quick team that likes to shoot 3s, and create quick offense.

There are three options to see the game: Live Radio Live Video Live Stats

Also, I may be on google chat if people are around during the game. Leave a message in the comment section if interested.

Keys to Tonight's Game

Contain Givens - she's the best player and the team runs through her. Get her in foul trouble or lock her up on defense and it should be a relatively easy night for the Terps. Coleman talked about her defense getting better and this would be the best player to show it against.

Put them away early. We have a target on our back now and singe digit wins won't cut it in the mind of the media. Last year it was ok because we were young, but now they expect us to blow out teams.

Dominate the paint. This should be easy for us, but it still has to be driven home.

Run our offense. We got back into the the throw up the 3 offense in the exhibition for a while. Work the ball around and find the best open shot.

Make free throws. A weakness in the exhibition, but I have a feeling we will have righted the ship.

Langhorne Named Preseason AP All-American

It took nearly three years, but Crystal is finally getting the respect she deserves as she was one of five players named to thePreseason AP All-America team. She got the fewest votes of the five, but did getting a glowing quote from Candace Parker:

"It's great to be on the team," she said. "They are a great group of girls, but there's only one girl that has the [championship] ring, and that is the ultimate goal."

Maryland Signs No.1 Recruiting Class

All that negative recruiting can't stop the power of a National Championship as Brenda signs No.1 recruiting class in the country! I think that makes her 5-for-5 now with Top 10 classes. Not bad for a gal from Iowa. Some publications have us ranked in other places, but nothing lower than 5. USA Today says Terps Stay Hot.

It's 4 guards and a post players. Strickland is a combo guard/forward. They replace Shay, Aurelie, and the scholarships lost via Kalika and Demauria. That gives us 14 players next year meaning we have 6 scholarships to give out with the loss of Crystal, Sa'de, Ashleigh, Harper and Jade.

Below are there pictures and profiles as well as what was in the release today.


"Marah is one of the best perimeter scorers in her class. She has the ability to be effective against anyone in the country. She can already hurt opponents in a variety of ways, and with her devotion to the game, she should only get better. Marah is another honor roll student."

A local product, 2006 Baltimore Sun Player of the Year Marah Strickland is the younger sister of former Terrapin great Marché Strickland (1999-2002). The highest rated player in Frese's recruiting class and ranked ninth in the country, the 5-10 guard averaged 22 points and 10 rebounds as a junior at Towson Catholic in Baltimore, Md., and was the Most Valuable Player of the End of the Trail Tournament in Oregon at the end of that summer. Marah was a Street & Smith second team All-American in last season, after garnering honorable mention nods twice. She was also a USA Today Sophomore and Junior All-American and was an adidas Top Ten Camp Underclass All-Star in 2002 and 2003. Heading into her senior year, she's been tabbed a preseason All-American by HoopGurlz.com after also earning Student Sports Junior All-American honors. Strickland's work rate in the classroom is equally notable as she boasts a 4.2 grade point average and is a member of the National Honor Society.

Marah Strickland's profile.

Marah Strickland article


"People at Drey's high school could not say enough wonderful things about her and we feel very fortunate she chose Maryland," said Frese. "She is an excellent student and is a dynamic frontcourt player who is competitive and will fit right in with our current group. She's also going to surprise people with how well she can shoot the ball."

Drey Mingo was invited to tryout with the Under-18 USA Basketball team over the summer. Rated the 16th-best player in the country and sixth-best forward, the 6-foot-2 post player led Marist High in Atlanta to its first-ever state tournament appearance last season, averaging 16 points, nine rebounds and three blocks per game. She was first team all-state twice and the AAA co-Player of the Year as a sophomore, while also being named Northside Conference Player of the Year as a junior. Mingo has been an honor roll or dean's list student since grade school and was recently inducted into the National Honor Society. She was voted Best All-Around by her classmates.

Drey Mingo's profile.


"Anjale has grown up around the game and has good game IQ, essential for a point guard," said Frese. "She plays with some flash, is very quick and is fun to watch. She can be a tremendous playmaker who will keep our team in the `up-tempo' mode we like to play. I think Anjale also has the potential to become a tremendous defender."

A 5-9 point guard and ranked 11th overall in the nation, Anjale Barrett is a three-time Street & Smith's Honorable Mention All-American, averaging 20 points, eight rebounds, six assists and four steals as a junior at St. Michael Academy in New York City. Barrett was named a Freshman All-American team by USA Today at the conclusion of her rookie campaign. She later was selected to the all-state team twice and was an AGS All-American Camp All-Star from 2004-06. Barrett's family is filled with basketball talent. Her older brother, Andre, is a member of the Chicago Bulls and was a standout player at Seton Hall University prior to going to the professional ranks.

Anjale Barrett's profile.


"A legit three-point threat who will bolster the backcourt, Kim is a physically strong player who has competed at high levels the past three years and has done well for herself. She will fit right in with our team concept and will contribute all over the court. Kim is also an excellent student who has been named to the honor roll."

Kim Rodgers is rated No. 17 in the country among high school seniors. A 5-9 guard from Virginia Beach, Va., she was named third team Parade All-American in 2006 and a Street & Smith's Honorable Mention All-American for the second time. A member of the basketball team at Princess Anne High School, Rodgers was a Student Sports Junior All-American and an Honorable Mention All-South selection by the Orlando Sentinel. She earned a number of accolades at the conclusion of her junior campaign, including AP AAA first team all-state. Following a campaign where she averaged 17 points, five rebounds, four assists and five steals per game, Rodgers was selected Beach District and VHSL Eastern Region Player of the Year for the second-straight year as a junior, while being named All-Tidewater Player of the Year for the first time. In the previous season, she was an AAU Under-16 All-American and participated in the Nike Skills Academy. She was an End of the Trail All-Tournament honoree in 2005 and 2006 and, this summer, Rodgers was named the Boo Williams Invitational Most Valuable Player for the second-straight year.

Kim Rodgers' profile


"Katheryn, who chose Maryland as a sophomore and is in the running for class Valedictorian, is a winner and true team player. As a junior, she led her high school team to an undefeated season and state championship. She is a combo guard who loves to get her teammates involved in the game and is unselfish. She fits the profile of our team perfectly."

A two-time Street & Smith's Honorable Mention All-American, Katheryn Lyons from Kernersville, N.C., led Bishop McGuiness High to a 31-0 record and a top-25 national ranking by USA Today last year, garnering Northwest 1A Conference Player of the Year honors. The 5-foot-10 guard, who averaged 17.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, 6.7 assists and 5.6 steals per game, was also the Winston-Salem Journal's, Greensboro News & Record's and the High Point Enterprise's High School Player of the Year after her junior campaign. Lyons is a three-time first team all-state selection by NCPreps.com and was the Most Valuable Player of the state tournament championship game after she was named the West Regional State Tournament MVP. A three-time first team all-conference pick, she has scored 1,297 points in her first three seasons at Bishop McGuiness. Lyons' statistics in the classroom are just as impressive. She currently ranks second in her class with a 4.83 grade point average, is a member of the National Honor Society and is the youngest member to ever be selected to serve on the Kernersville Town and Parks Advisory Board.

Katheryn Lyons' profile

Kat Lyons Article

Thursday's Links

Nancy Lieberman breaks down all the conferences on ESPN.com. She has the Terps as the favorites to win, but then again throws Sa'de under the bus.

Marc Carig of the Washington Post wonders if the Terps are A Dynasty in the Making.

The Charlottesville Daily Progress previews the 2006-07 ACC Women's Basketball Season

Mel Greenburg of the Philadelphia Daily Inquirer writes National Title and dynamic duo make Maryland the team to beat.

The Roanoke Times tells you What to Watch For in the ACC.

Katrina Waugh of the Roanoke Times writes Terps Add To League Legacy.

The AP wrote ACC New Powerhouse in Women's Basketball.

Dave Ginsburg says Loaded Terps Ready for Title Defense.

Mark Selig of the Diamondback writes Newman ready for trip back home

Wednesday's Links

CBS Sportsline, which has remarkably updated their women's site, posted their All-America Teams. Langhorne's a first-teamer, Coleman's nowhere to be found.

Mark Selig of The Diamondback writes The Champs No Longer Disrespected

Mark Selig also writes about The Aftermath of 'The Shot'.

Joey Johnston of the Tampa Tribune writes Maryland Ready to Take Opponents' Best Shot.

Jerry Zgoda looks at the 10 Storylines to Follow This Year.

ESPN.com's experts gives us their Top Players at Each Position.Langhorne, Coleman, Harper and Shay all made it, with Toliver an honorable mention.

SI.com looked into their Crystal Ball for the season. All three experts see us back in the Final Four with two of them having us win it all.

Tracy Schultz already has the Terps ranked No. 1 in her power rankings.

Terps No. 1 in AP Poll

For the first time in school history, Maryland's women's basketball is ranked #1 in the preseason. We got 47 of the 50 votes with UNC getting one and Oklahoma getting 2. Click Here for complete poll


Now that the polls have come out, it makes one wonder what would have happened had we not won the title? Would we get respect in the preseason polls or would Carolina and Oklahoma take most of the #1 votes? Thanks to KT and the ladies, we never had to find out.

Tuesday's Links

ESPN.com continues their preview with the Top 20 questions for this season. Maryland is only the focus of one question (#5) but they should have been mentioned in questions 2 and 17.

The Diamondback also has 5 questions surrounding the team.

Monday Links

ESPN finally got around to previewing the season today and will be doing a little bit each day to get us ready for the March to Cleveland.

• Today we see their Top 25 and Charlie Creme's 1-64 projections (Take a guess who's not #1).

• Mechelle Voepel thinks the Terps are back, better and have bigger expectations.

Greg Auman of the St. Petersburg Times previews the upcoming season.

Looks like Brenda may be playing Anita Marks 1-on-1 soon.

Ron Snyder of the Baltimore Examiner says that Standards Increasing at College Park

Terps Win 80-64 over Lake Truck

The 2006 Terps made their debut last night in front of a disappointing crowd and defeated Lake Truck 80-64. The game wasn't as close as the score indicates as the Terps led by 31 with 8:30 to go and went into cruise control mode. It was kind of a boring game as the only new player we got to see was Marrone and I was impressed with the way she played. Perry replaced Toliver in the starting line up, but I ahve no idea why.

Recap | Box Score | Quotes | Photo Gallery

Positives

We came out strong and put them away early. I blinked and it was 17-4. That's what I was looking for.

Marrone. I wasn't sure what to expect from her, but she ran the point effectively and hit some nice outside jumpers.

The defense looked better than last year as we were more active on screens and got in front of their shooters. Still have some work to do, but you can tell we worked on our D.

It was just fun to see the team out there again and realize the firepower we have. Coleman had an off shooting night, but Shay was scoring. Lang had 8 and 8 in 19 minutes and Harper was again consistent.

Negatives

The crowd. less than 1,000 for the debut of the 2006 NC? ridiculous. Maybe the marketing department should work harder to get fans to a women's game then running constant commercials for a men's program that typically sells out.

Introductions/Announcer. Hopefully everything will be fine tuned by Nov 12, but the CD skipping BS is high school level crap and who announced the game - Mickey Mouse? I could barely hear the guy even with the music off and his voice was so high-pitched.

Quick shooting. We tended to go back to our old style of throwing it around the perimeter and then firing up a shot. While we have great shooters, I would like to see Lang, Harper and Perry get more touches in the paint.

Free Throwing Shooting. Not very good tonight as everyone was missing. It's ok now, but in bigger games that could be the difference in winning and losing. (Ask Thornburn from Utah and Waner from Duke about it)

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