Terps Discuss Recent Wins

Looks like the team had a meeting yesterday to discuss all these close games. I for one would like to live longer so it would be nice to have some 30-pt blow out wins the next few weeks.

Recent Wins Too Close For Comfort

Langhorne and Coleman win ACC Weekly Honors

It what was a no brainer for the voters, Crystal picked up her second ACC POW honor yesterday after her monster week. Coleman made it a sweep by picking up her fourth ACC Rookie of the Week honors. I don't have any facts to back this up, but Maryland has to be leading the rest of the conference in ACC ROW winners the last 3 years.

Official Release

Langhorne's Career-high propel Terps past Wake, 79-70, in OT

Another road game, another nail biter, another overtime session. 4 ACC games on the road this year and 3 of them have gone to OT each time the Terps have come away with the win. The only problem is that from here on out, the road games don't get any easier: 2/9 @ North Carolina, 2/13 @ Duke, 2/19 @ NC State. We have a clinched a winning record on the road in the ACC for the first time in forever so that's a good sign, but the bad part is we show no intensity until we realize we may lose. Two big games await us this week with Miami on Wednesday more than likely will lock up the first round playoff bye with a win and the rematch with Virginia on Sunday.

Game Story | Box Score

Positives

Langhorne. What can you say about her? Game's on the line and she takes the ball to hole with authority and then makes her free throws. 34 points and 14 rebounds is an impressive day for anyone. If only she can do this in the first half.

Harper. We needed another low post presence yesterday and Harper gave it to us with 13 points and 6 rebounds. I wish we would get her even more involved in the offense.

Turnovers. We had 5 in the first 5 minutes and then only 9 the rest of the way. Maybe this will be the start of something new.

Rebounding. This was a game we should have dominated on the glass and we did outrebounding Wake by 18.

Negatives

Defending the 3. It's quite obvious from looking at the stats that Wake shoots a lot of threes. My question is why did we never guard the person shooting the 3? Bond-Young made 6 threes three days after Nnamake had a field day behind the arc. It's time to get a hand in their faces ladies.

3-point shooting. What has happened to it the last few games? 4 in two games after the way we started the year? This is not a good time for the whole team to start slumping.

Shay. I am hoping the GT game wasn't a mirage, but she had another poor shooting effort. I like that she attacked the glass and collected 9 rebounds, but we need her to be more consistent with her shot.

Free Throw shooting down the stretch. We had several key misses at the end of the game and OT. Luckily they didn't hurt us.

Articles
Winston-Salem Journal
The Diamondback

Pictures

Game 21 @ Wake Forest

Well we are on the road again, this time in Winston-Salem, NC to take on the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. This will be the first of four trips to North Carolina in the next 21 days. A win guarantees us a winning record on the road in the ACC. It also moves us to 6-1 on the season and 19-2 overall. Last year we didn't get win #19 until the first round of the ACC tournament.

Wake is 10-8 on the season and 2-3 in conference play. Among the similar opponents, they have beaten Coppin State by 29, lost to Duke by 46, beat Virginia Tech in OT by 6 and lost to Georgia Tech by 6. They are 7-2 at home this year. They start 4 guards and an undersized forward. Their tallest player 6'5 Melissa Washington rarely sees playing time and averages 10.8 minutes per game.


They average 69.1 ppg while allowing 66.8. In conference play those numbers are drastically different. They love to shoot the three as they have taken 423 this season and are shooting 32% from that range. From inside the arc, they are shooting 39.7%. They average 37 rebounds per game and only have 49 blocks on the season. With four guards they are able to get in the passing lanes as they have 191 steals, unfortunately they are averaging 18.4 turnovers per game.

Wake is led by the two-headed monster of Cotelia Bond-Young and Liz Strunk. Bond-Young is a quick point guard who does it all. She leads the team in points (17.2), assists (81), steals (42) and is second in 3-pt percentage (33.5%). Strunk is a taller guard who likes to spot up and shoot but can also take people off the dribble. Last year, she scored 40 in a game. She leads the team in rebounding and shoots 40% from the floor. Naughton is a decent three-point shooter, can rebound and collect steals.

Wake Roster | Wake Stats

Keys to the game

Establish inside presence. They have no one who can guard Crystal, Jade or Harper.

Get on them from the start. The last few road games has seen this team come out flat and nearly down double digits before turning it on.

Limit their three-point shooting. They like to shoot it from behind the arc. So we need to get a hand in their face at all times and limit their shooting chances.

Put the game away early. Next week is big with games vs. Miami and Virginia at home. We need to rest some players for down the stretch.

Attack the glass. If we get outrebounded this game, it may be time to work on rebounding drills in practice.


Maryland Game Notes | Wake Forest Game Notes

Langhorne and Doron take the sting out of the Yellow Jackets, 79-71

Well, it took a trip home for Shay to regain her shooting touch and we needed it in the second half. GT and their crazy zone gave Langhorne fits in the first half and then Coleman in the second half, so Shay was called upon to lead us to victory. Shay was a key reason the team built a 16-pt lead with 6 minutes to go. Unfortunately, GT acted like typical bees and wouldn't die, making the last few minutes nail biters. We came away with the win and that's all the matters. We are now 18-2 on the season and 5-1 in the ACC. 3 more ACC wins to clinch a winning record. The win also gives us a two-game lead on Miami and NC State for the final bye in the ACC Tournament.

I give Georgia Tech credit, they are not a good team, but with constant subbing and what looked like a 1-3-1 zone they were able to disrupt the flow of the game and keep it close. Granted close games doesn't guarantee you a new contract, but if you are all for moral victories more power to you.

Game Story | Box Score | Quotes | Notes

Postives

Players stepping up. Coleman did it in the first half, then Langhorne and Doron in the second half. This shows the type of depth we have and also prevents opposing teams from keying on one player.

the Student section. It looks to be growing each game, which is great.

Free Throw shooting. 33 out of 40 is great especially in a close game. My only beef is that we missed some down the stretch again.

Harper. She continues to be a force down low defensively, we just need more out of her offensive game from time to time.

Negatives

The refs. Time for the ACC to fix this problem.

Defense. We let up in the second half for who knows what reason. Maybe we are tired from all these games in so many days, but any time you are up 16, the lead should never get back down to 3.

Rebounding. We got outrebounded last night for the second time all year. As Crystal said there has to be more hustle especially when Crystal is blocked out. She can't get all of them.

Intensity. We lacked it again to start the game. Teams aren't going to roll over and die for us.

Articles
Baltimore Sun
Washington Times

Photos

Game 20 vs. Georgia Tech

Just a brief stop at home before we hit the road again for the game at Wake Forest. This should be a game we win the first half since we are at home and the Yellow Jackets are not one of the better teams in the league. To be honest, I have yet to see GT play this year, so I have no idea what kind of offense or defense they run.

Georgia Tech is 12-6 on the season and 1-4 in the ACC. Our only common opponent is Duke, and they lost 67-59. They are averaging 64.7 ppg while allowing only 55.4. They shoot 39.6% from the floor and 32% from 3. On the otherhand, teams are shooting 33.7% from the field and 26% from behind the arc. Here's the rub though, in conference play the team's numbers are different as opponents are scoring 72 ppg and shooting 40%. So it looks like playing patsies to start the season will help them get an NIT bid and not much else.

Their leading scorer is 5'9 guard Stephanie Higgs, who's averaing 12.0 ppg. She will shoot the three, but she's got almost as many takes as Coleman has makes. Next is Chioma Nnamaka a 5-11 guard who can shoot the 3 (35%) and drive to the hole. Their leading rebounder is 6' forward Janie Mitchell with 7.4 per game. She's giving up 2 to 3 inches to each of our post players. Jill Ingram is the PG but she has more turnovers than assists. Kasha Terry is the other starting forward and she's 6'3, but only grabbing 5.4 rebounds per game. Chances are she will be matched up against Perry.

GT Roster | GT Stats

Keys to the Game

Intensity. Coming off back-to-back lethargic performances, the team needs to jump on GT early and often so that some of the players can finally rest.

Containing Higgs and Nnamaka. Guards have given us fits this year, especially athletic ones, so we need to contain them.

Controlling the ball. GT may want the score to appear closer than it is so we need to get a good shot on each possession.

Three-point shooting. They tend to be tough on the outside shot, so if it's not there, drive to the hoop and dish it to one of the post players for the easy buckets.

Maryland Game Notes | GT Game Notes

It's Official! Sa'de Coming to Maryland

After weeks of speculation and stories, UMTerps.com officially announced today Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood will be a Terp.

She can play next December and has 1.5 years left. Let's see how well that Duke press works next year with Wiley-Gatewood and Toliver on the court at the same time.

Our Newest Terp!

Here are some articles covering the transfer:
ESPN.com
The Diamondback
CSTV

Bracketology

Charlie Creme released his latest bracket and he has the Terps as a two seed in the San Antonio bracket. First it would be Loyola Marymount and then either Florida or K-State in State College.

Jerry Palm put up his bracket and he also has the Terps as a two seed in State College, but playing Dartmouth and then either Louisville or TCU.

Wednesday's Terp Tidbits

The polls are out and we stayed the same in both. Good to see Duke beat UT by more than they beat us and take over the #1 slot.

The new Power Poll still has us at 6.

Clay Kallam put Crystal among his Top 20 Midseason Players

Under the Shell is on tonight at 11 on Comcast SportsNet.

Toliver Takes Over as Terps Beat Hokies, 68-62

I am really getting tired of these road ACC games following the same pattern. Again last night, we built a lead, only to see it evaporate and then go down big at the start of the second half. We played awful in the first half, missing a ton of easy shots and not boxing out. You would figure we would show passion in the second half, but the Hokies decided to get out on the break to start the second half and it resulted in easy bucket after easy bucket. The Hokies lead 39-30, before the Terps stormed back to take a 43-42 lead midway through the half. The teams traded buckets the rest of the way, until super frosh Kristi Toliver decided enough was enough and scored 10 points in a row to help us sweep the Commonwealth this year. If you include George Mason we went 3-0 in Virginia this year. The game wasn't pretty and we played lethargic throughout the game. Didn't help that the refs called 41 fouls or that Harper and Newman were out of the game with 4 minutes to go.

It's a win and puts us a full game ahead of Miami in the ACC standings. Short week for us with GT on Thursday and at Wake on Sunday. We need to put those two teams away early.

Game Story | Box Score

Positives

Crystal dominated again. Aside from a few questionable traveling calls, Crystal took advantage of her weaker opponents by going strong to the glass and scoring a team high 21 points and grabbing 12 rebounds. We just need to get her the ball more.

Toliver. You would never know she was a freshman playing with a leg injury, the way she has played the last few games. Her shot wasn't falling early on, but it went in when the game mattered most. Also, she played great defense on Mason throughout the game, not allowing her to go off as she normally has against us.

Charmaine. She had the biggest bucket of the night, as she raced down the court picked up a rebound and put it back to give the Terps a 43-42 lead. She also played decent defense in her limited minutes.

Free Throw shooting. We went 9-for-9 in the first half, which singlehandily kept us in the game.

Marissa and Shay. The shots weren't falling so they did the little things. Rebound, play defense and hustle. These two have to stop worrying about their shots too much.

Negatives

The officiating. There were 41 combined fouls in this game and nearly half of them were questionable. It was illegal to breath on certain players, but running people over was allowed.

Turnovers. 20 is too many, especially 13 in the first half.

Free Throw shooting. We missed too many with the game on the line.

Defending slashing forwards. Every game we get burned by a player that can slash to the hoop. This needs to be fixed.

Articles
Collegiate Times

Pictures

Toliver Named ACC Rookie of the Week

She had a great week and was rewarded today with her first career Rookie of the Week award. Couple that with Coleman's several wins and the last 3 years has seen two different Terps win the award each year. Brenda's doing a great job recruiting.

Toliver Named Rookie of the Week

Game #19 @ Virginia Tech

The Commonwealth State road trip ends tomorrow night with a 7 p.m. game against Virginia Tech at Cassell Coliseum. Tech comes into the game ranked #18/24 and 14-3 on the season. They are 1-3 in the ACC with losses to NC State, Virginia and Wake Forest. They played no one in the non-conference portion of their schedule, but somehow have a high RPI. They have won three straight against us so it's time for the streak to end.

The Hokies are not as athletic as us and tend to play a slow methodical game making the most out of each possession. Last year, Carrie Mason had a field day against us from the perimeter. They don't possess much height aside from their 6'6 junior, who when I saw her play last year was very raw. Finnerty and Jackson are more like Jady Perry type players. Gardin is an athletic forward who attacks the glass and can slash. Judging by their shooting numbers they tend to be post oriented as they are shooting 44% from the floor, but only 32% from 3. Mason and Cook are the three-point shooters. They don't shoot well from the free throw line, and they have high rebounding numbers, but they didn't fare so well against BC and Wake on the glass.

VT Roster | VT Stats

Keys to the game

Dominating the paint. VT has a ton of bodies to throw down there and they have wide bodies to box out Lang and Harper. We have to control the glass and get them in foul trouble.

Limit their three point shots. We lost last year because they had too many wide open looks. Mason is deadly when open.

Control Gardin and Criss. These slashing forwards have given us fits all year.

Limit the Turnovers. The Hokies average only 70 ppg and hold opponents to 62 ppg. We have to make the most of our opportunities.

Play defense like we did in Overtime on Friday. That effort needs to be there for longer than 5 minute spurts.

Shay needs to emerge from her slump. She's averaging 8.9 ppg in ACC play, not what one expects from a First Team All-ACC player.

This game is a must win as it helps separate us from the pack especially with winnable games vs. GT and Wake on the horizon.

Maryland Game Notes | VT Game Notes

Terps Outduel Cavaliers, 84-74, in Overtime

No better way to close down University Hall than with a win! It took us 14 years to get that win, but it felt good to leave the arena last night with a win. The game basically followed our trends from the last few road games. Go down early, rally back to take a halftime lead, then give the halftime lead back, keep it close, do down with 4 minutes to go, call on Crystal to tie the game, play solid defense and then go to OT and take the wind out of their sails. We are now 16-2 on the year, 3-1 in the ACC and 2-0 on the road in the ACC (both at tough places to play). The best part is that we are winning games that last year we probably would have lost. It's nice to have so many weapons at our disposal.

Game Story | Box Score

Positives

Crystal. When it mattered most, Crystal wanted the ball and took over the game in the final minutes and in overtime. Plus she showed enthusiasm, which is something we don't always see out of her.

Harper. I wish she would take people to the hole more often, but she was effective last night in controlling the glass and blocking shots. The boxscore says only 3 but I think she had more and changed the way virginia attacked the lane.

Coleman. She looked hesistant to start, but then she got rolling and showed flashes over her earlier work. She hit the three was necessary, but also drove to the bucket and dished to the open person.

Passing. The first half we did a great job of making that extra pass to get Ashleigh or Marissa an open look.

Defense. Wasn't great the whole game, but when we needed it, the team buckled down and got the stops we needed. Virginia thought they had the game in regulation, our defense told them they were wrong.

Youth. Don't know how many people noticed it, but the 5 players on the court for most of the final 15 minutes were Toliver (FR), Coleman (FR), Harper (basically a FR), Newman (limited playing time SO) and Langhorne (SO). That's very little experience on the court in crunch time and they did what was asked of them.
Negatives

Shay. Her head isn't there right now. She's scared to shoot and is trying to force the action or draw a foul to make an impact on the team. She needs to play within herself and not think too much. We are going to need her to break out of this funk soon.

Fast break. I counted at least 5 missed opportunities on the fast break. 3 of which were settling for quick jumpers with no help and two were off of bad passes. Those should be 10 easy points and with them we don't play overtime.

Toliver's shoot happiness. She's a great shooter and all, but a few times she was throwing up shots early in the possession when it was unnecessary. Maybe it was to please all her fans in attendance.

Articles

Times-Dispatch

Staunton News Leader

Roanoke Times

Pictures

Game #18 @ Virginia

Four days after our win over FSU, we hit the road to the Commonwealth State for two critical games in the ACC Slate. Tonight the trip begins in Charlottesville, Va. taking on the Cavaliers, who beat Virginia Tech on Monday night for their first ACC victory. The Cavs (or Hoos or whatever other nickname they have) are 12-3 on the season and our only like opponents are Florida State, which they lost to by 14 on the road. We haven't faired to well at Reynolds Col. having only won 4 times in the building.

Virginia is led by Seidah Williams who is averaging 11.7 ppg and 4.8 rpg. She's a 6'2 center who is lanky like Black, but not as effective. Tiffany Sardin is next on the team in scoring with 10.6 ppg and 6.2 rpg. Their leading rebounder is Lyndra Littles, a 6'1 freshman, with 8.3 rpg. The star of the team is Sharnee Zoll, who played with Coleman and Langhorne on the U-19 team. She's great at finding the open spot in the lane and creating offense. Her main weakness is that she is not a great shooter. I have seen Virginia play a few times and they rely on their defense a ton. They are holding opponents to .383 FG% and 25% from behind the arc. Their offense is very methodical as Zoll looks to drive the lane and dish it out to Granberry and McGuire (their 3-pt shooters) or dump it off inside on the double team. Virginia is also a poor free throw shooting team.

Virginia Roster | Virginia Stats

Keys to the Game

Limit Zoll's touches. She's not as good as Harding, but our guards tend to have trouble covering quicker players. Hopefully Newman draws this assignment.

Don't help on the drives. Virginia wants you to do this so that McGuire is left open. McGuire can hit the open 3, but she struggles with people in her face.

Use our height advantage. Harper, Perry and Langhorne should be able to control the glass like they did against FSU.

Get the outside game going. Against NC State, UVA was so worried about Stansbury, Goring and Washington that they left McDowell and Ashley Key open, resulting in them getting burned. We need to see the old Marissa back.

Shay needs to break out, but not try and do it all. I know the last three games have been frustrating for her, but she can't go into Shay commando mode where she tries to do it all. Just play your game.

Run the break and don't let Virginia set up their defense.

Maryland Game Notes | Virginia Game Notes

Times-Dispatch Preview

Terp Tidbits

New polls are out and we stayed at 6th. UConn jumped us in both, which is understandable since they beat LSU. We picked up votes in both polls though, impressive considering we didn't play for a week.

The SI Power Poll was released today and we moved up to 6th.

Ed Lee at the Baltimore Sun says a source told him Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood will be a Terp.

Dick Patrick talks about Toliver's return to the court. (Third item down)

Jerry Palm release his new bracket and we dropped to a 6 seed. That's a little ridiculous.

Under the Shell is on tonight at 11 on Comcast SportsNet.

Terps Defeat Seminoles, 75-57

This is what I expect to see from the No. 6 team in the country. Tough defense, clutch rebounds and terrific shooting so that by the second half it's Charmaine and Aurelie time. Florida State played with us for about 10 minutes, mainly because Miller pitched a tent in the lane and had easy buckets for the start of the game. Then the wear and tear of being guarded by Jade and overall lack of conditioning made her ineffective the final 25 minutes and Maryland was able to pull away. The second half was a bore as FSU never mounted a real comeback and even when they attempted to, Kristi would hit a 3 or Crystal would pull down a board.

Game Story | Box Score | Quotes | Notes

Positives

Jade Perry. Jade's confidence from the end of the Duke game looks to have carried over as she was more apt to shoot the jumper then I have seen in several games. Jade needs to provide offense while teams double and triple Crystal. I also think Jade was a little pissed Miller kept scoring on her.

Crystal's rebounding. Someone should tell Crystal she didn't get any rebounds the previous game more often. She was a beast on the glass, with her arms coming out of nowhere to grab rebounds. I was hoping she would get 20, but 19 is not too shabby.

Toliver. Attention ACC: The Virgin Islands Toliver is back. 6 out of 8 shooting, 4 of 4 from behind the arc and several crisp passes. Her turnovers weren't that bad and she seemed to be back in tune with the offense.

Newman. She slashed to the hoop last night, played stellar D and hit the open three at the appropriate time.

Negatives

Turnovers. once again too many, but I think most of them were in the second half.

Coleman and Shay's shooting. It seems to be getting to their heads as they have been off in ACC play.

Free Throw Shooting. It didn't factor in tonight, but when you get to the line 23 times you have to make at least 18.

Articles
Baltimore Sun

Pictures

Game 17 vs. Florida State

It's been 8 days since the debacle against Duke and now it's time to see how the team responds. We should be all rested and even healthier. The only problem is Florida State hasn't played in a week neither.

The Seminoles enter the game 10-5 and 1-1 in the conference with a win over Virginia and a loss to Duke (they nearly lost by the same score we did 87-68). In their last game they held Virginia to under 25% shooting, but that's not saying much as Virginia's offense is very vanilla and relies a lot on outside shooting.

FSU is holding opponents to 40% shooting and 30% from 3. Decent but not overly impressive. They only shoot 66% from the free throw line and turn the ball over as much as we do. They also average 11.1 steals per game, so I assume they press a lot or just happen to be in the right place at the right time.

They are led by senior guard Ganiyat Adeduntan who is averaging 12.8 and 4.7 rebounds. She shoots 35% from 3 second to Mara Freshour's .444. They match up with us height wise and boast of three 6'4 players. Miller is their leading shot blocker and roughly picks up 3 fouls per game so she's not a risk to foul out.

The Keys to today's game:

How well can we contain the perimeter? This a guard laden team and we seem to struggle against faster more athletic guards (see Lindsay Harding and Alexis Hornbuckle).

How will Crystal fare against the taller players? Sometimes she seems to disappear when the people guarding her are taller. Also has she learned how to pass out of the double teams?

How will the team in general respond?

No more predictions from me as the last 3 haven't gone so well.

FSU Roster | FSU Stats

Maryland Game Notes | FSU Game Notes


Tallahassee Democrat Game Preview

Game 17 vs. Florida State

It's been 8 days since the debacle against Duke and now it's time to see how the team responds. We should be all rested and even healthier. The only problem is Florida State hasn't played in a week neither.

The Seminoles enter the game 10-5 and 1-1 in the conference with a win over Virginia and a loss to Duke (they nearly lost by the same score we did 87-68). In their last game they held Virginia to under 25% shooting, but that's not saying much as Virginia's offense is very vanilla and relies a lot on outside shooting.

FSU is holding opponents to 40% shooting and 30% from 3. Decent but not overly impressive. They only shoot 66% from the free throw line and turn the ball over as much as we do. They also average 11.1 steals per game, so I assume they press a lot or just happen to be in the right place at the right time.

They are led by senior guard Ganiyat Adeduntan who is averaging 12.8 and 4.7 rebounds. She shoots 35% from 3 second to Mara Freshour's .444. They match up with us height wise and boast of three 6'4 players. Miller is their leading shot blocker and roughly picks up 3 fouls per game so she's not a risk to foul out.

The Keys to today's game:

How well can we contain the perimeter? This a guard laden team and we seem to struggle against faster more athletic guards (see Lindsay Harding and Alexis Hornbuckle).

How will Crystal fare against the taller players? Sometimes she seems to disappear when the people guarding her are taller. Also has she learned how to pass out of the double teams?

How will the team in general respond?

No more predictions from me as the last 3 haven't gone so well.

FSU Roster | FSU Stats

Maryland Game Notes | FSU Game Notes


Tallahassee Democrat Game Preview

Game 17 vs. Florida State

It's been 8 days since the debacle against Duke and now it's time to see how the team responds. We should be all rested and even healthier. The only problem is Florida State hasn't played in a week neither.

The Seminoles enter the game 10-5 and 1-1 in the conference with a win over Virginia and a loss to Duke (they nearly lost by the same score we did 87-68). In their last game they held Virginia to under 25% shooting, but that's not saying much as Virginia's offense is very vanilla and relies a lot on outside shooting.

FSU is holding opponents to 40% shooting and 30% from 3. Decent but not overly impressive. They only shoot 66% from the free throw line and turn the ball over as much as we do. They also average 11.1 steals per game, so I assume they press a lot or just happen to be in the right place at the right time.

They are led by senior guard Ganiyat Adeduntan who is averaging 12.8 and 4.7 rebounds. She shoots 35% from 3 second to Mara Freshour's .444. They match up with us height wise and boast of three 6'4 players. Miller is their leading shot blocker and roughly picks up 3 fouls per game so she's not a risk to foul out.

The Keys to today's game:

How well can we contain the perimeter? This a guard laden team and we seem to struggle against faster more athletic guards (see Lindsay Harding and Alexis Hornbuckle).

How will Crystal fare against the taller players? Sometimes she seems to disappear when the people guarding her are taller. Also has she learned how to pass out of the double teams?

How will the team in general respond?

No more predictions from me as the last 3 haven't gone so well.

FSU Roster | FSU Stats

Maryland Game Notes | FSU Game Notes


Tallahassee Democrat Game Preview

Terps Tidbits For Friday

ESPN released its first Women's Bracket. Terps are seeded #2 in the Albuquerque Region with a first round match up vs. Bucknell.

Beth Mowins did a story on Shay and her influence on Israeli Basketball.

CSTV's Jennifer Garrison calls the Terps a spoiler for the title.

Three of the Terps have their own blogs now: Marissa | Shay | Crystal. Check them out, they are all good reads.

Terps Tidbits

The first bracket prediction is out and it has us seeded #4 and playing ODU in the first round. To get the bracket use the pull down menus at the top.

Dick Patrick at USA Today confirmed last week's rumor about Wiley-Gatewood in his column this week.

Under the Shell was on last night and although it wasn't as great as the first episode it was still a decent watch. Talked about the B.C. game, the holiday party and the Duke debacle. If you missed it go to the Under The Shell website or watch CSTV on Friday at 5 EST.

We're Still #6.

I guess it's good to have both your losses come at the hands of the #1 and #2 ranked teams in the country. We stayed 6th in both polls, but UConn is gaining on us.

In the SI Power Poll we are ranked 7th.

Rick Maese Covers the Terps

Baltimore Sun did a column on the game yesterday, but I didn't find it until today. It's a good read, hope you enjoy it.

Baltimore Sun's Rick Maese

Updating Next Year's Newest Terps

DeMauria Liles's team is now 13-3 and was recently featured in the Baltimore Sun

Emery Wallace played her first game of the season the other night and scored 9 points in limited time. Great to see her back on the court and hopefully will be ready by training camp next year.

Duke's D Stifles Maryland, 86-68

It's been nearly 30 hours and I still can't believe how bad we played in the first half. Things started so well when Bales and Williams got into foul trouble, but then Harding took over and Bales' replacement Chante Black showed again why she loves playing vs. Maryland with 9 quick points. By the time the first half was over we were down 17 and the game was essentially over. We made a nice run in the second half to cut it to 9 twice, but we were missing that one stop and/or basket to get the crowd back into the game. Give Duke a ton of credit. They limited Crystal's touches and held her to 0 (yes 0) rebounds and gave Shay fits at the point. We learned a lot yesterday and should be better prepared for the rematch on Feb. 13th.

Game Story | Box Score | Quotes

Positives (Yes, there were a few)

Looked like Toliver finally regained her legs and shot in the second half. If we can get her to 100% by the time we enter that tough stretch it will help a lot. She kept us in the game in the second half and prevented Duke from sagging off.

Jade Perry. Sometimes she shrinks in games like this, but in the second half I saw her fight for lose balls and also wasn't afraid to shoot over the taller Bales.

Rebounding. We lost the board battle, but only by 1 and that's impressive given Crystal's 0-fer.

Coleman's defense. She did a solid job shutting down Currie for most of the game until some questionable calls and fatigue got to her.

The Crowd. Any time we can get 16,000 people inside Comcast for the women it makes me happy. Let's see how many come back for FSU.

Negatives

Turnovers. 24 is too many against a team like Duke. Especially when we were forcing the ball to spots it would never fit.

Defense. We didn't box out Black at all and Harding had her way with Doron. I expected better play out of our veteran and was shocked that Newman and Doron didn't switch up.

Foul shooting. We missed too many and again Shay missed two.

Shay's play. She said before the game she was going to play loose and then once the game started she rushed shots and forced passes.

Articles

CNN/SI

Annapolis Capital

Diamondback

The Duke Chronicle

Washington Times

Baltimore Sun

Washington Post

Philadelphia Inquirer

Pictures

Official Site Photo Gallery

More Newspaper Previews of the Game

More articles to read to get ready for today's game.

Washington Post

Baltimore Sun

Game 16: Vs. Duke

Well this is the game we have been waiting over 10 months for. The Blue Devils come to Comcast undefeated and untested so far this season. They boast the nation's highest scoring team and block a ton of shots. In year's past, Maryland came into the game short-handed as they didn't have the same athletes as Duke. Three recruiting classes later and firepower at every position, Maryland sends its best team to the floor in its attempt to defeat Duke for the first time in 13 tries. Can we do it? Yes, but it won't be easy.

My keys to the game:

Match the defensive intensity we showed vs. MSU and UT. Duke is used to scoring at will, we need to show them it's not that easy.

Use pump fakes. Bales and Black are great at blocking shots and are the tallest duo we have played all season. We need to get them off their feet and get them in foul trouble to open the lane for Lang, Perry and Harper.

Will the old Toliver show up? Since he return to the line up Toliver has yet to make a shot from the field. We know she has it in her and hopefully tomorrow is the game where she recaptures the magic.

Handle Duke's press. Duke loves to press in order to jumpstart their offense. We can't get sucked in with their traps and make sure we spot the open people right away.

No slow starts. Against MSU and BC, we started slow and almost paid for it. Duke will make us pay for it.

Limit the turnovers. Scoring may be at a premium so we don't want to waste possessions.

I see a close game with the Terps coming away with the win in the final minutes.

Maryland Game Notes | Duke Game Notes

Hot Rumor Regarding a Former UT Player

According to someone on the UT Message Board, former Lady Vol Sade Wiley-Gatewood wants to transfer to either UNC or Maryland. Granted the source is someone who ran into her at a bar, so I take it all with a grain of salt. Now if she makes an appearance around Comcast soon, my view may change. She's got two weeks to make up her mind if she doesn't want to sit out a year and a half.

Gatewood to Maryland or NC Post

Getting Ready for the Blue Devils

As I am sure you all know, tomorrow is the big game vs. Duke. As of this morning we already have three previews and they are linked below as well as Brenda's look ahead to Sunday.

Baltimore Sun

Associated Press

UMTerps.com

Brenda's Preview

I will have my preview later today.

Terps Declaw Eagles in OT, 67-64

I have to say I much rather prefer the games that are over at halftime rather than the nailbiter we all endured tonight. After 45 minutes of play, we prevailed on the road over Boston College by the score of 67-64. It wasn't our best shooting night, but when the game was on the line we grabbed the key rebounds and made the shots we needed too. Last year I fear we would have lost this game. I know BC is ranked 19th, but they are tough to beat at home and any time you pick up a road ACC win, especially when Duke, UNC, Virginia Tech, NC State and Virginia are also featured on the road schedule, it's great for the team and the program.

Kudos to Shay, who struggled shooting for most of the game but with the game on the line nailed a three-pointer to give us a four point lead and then hit two free throws to basically seal the deal. Crystal also served notice that she's back and you better guard her. 24 points and 13 rebounds to lead everyone.

Game Story | Box Score

Positives

Our poise. Whenever we trailed, we answered and never let the game get out of reach.

Rebounding. We outrebounded them by 13, including 17 offensive rebounds, which is huge in close games.

Defense. We limited them to 32 percent from the floor.

Laura Harper. We needed a strong presence in the post tonight and she gave us that with 15 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 blocks.

Negatives

Turnovers. We had too many down the stretch.

Free throw shooting. We only had 13 shots and we have to do better than only making 8. Even Shay missed one.

Defending the three pointer. Our one weakness this year seems to be getting out on the open shooter. Dorsey shot 6 out of 10. We can't let the other team's shooter get good looks.

Our guards seem to struggle tonight and since I didn't see the game, I can't say if it was the BC defense or bad shooting.

Kristi. It's great having her back, we just need her to regain the confidence in her shot.

Around the League
Duke beat Florida State, 87-68
Miami beat Georgia Tech, 75-63

Articles

Boston Globe

Pictures

Game 15: @ Boston College

Now that the cupcakes are out of the way, it's time to get down to business and recapture the ACC crown. That all starts tonight in Boston vs. the BC Eagles. Just want to thank the ACC for letting us play a new member on its home court for the second straight season. I sometimes feel the ACC goes out of its way to make our schedule harder than it has to be.

This is a big test as we haven't really been challenged since November and B.C. recently beat Stanford. B.C. is 12-2 on the year with their two losses coming to UConn and Ohio State. We don't have any common opponents so I can't compare and contrast from that angle. Looking at their roster, they seem to match us on height, but they start a 6'4, 6'2 and 6'0 at the center and forward positions. Judging from the stats the offense is run through their post players as Queenan, Ress and Parham account for 35 of the team's 70 points. Dorsey comes across as a pur shooting guard as she has only taken nine free throws all year, which is low for someone who starts and plays 28 minutes per game. What really stands out is that they don't seem to block a ton of shots. Queenan is tied with Macchia for the team lead with 12, while Ress only has 5, which is low for a 6'4 player.

The Keys for Tonight

Will we come out with intensity? It's been a long time since we played a team with real skill so I hope we come out with focus and not act like this will be a cakewalk.

Neutralizing Queenan. I am assuming Crystal will take Queenan as she is prone to shoot the 3 ball and Jade may not be quick enough to keep up with her. Crystal will be basically guarding her mirror image so I hope she knows how to stop herself.

Don't let Marshall beat you. She reminds me of Anesia (based on the stats) because she doesn't score and looks primary to distribute the ball. We can't forget about her because you never know when she could go off.

Stay out of foul trouble and get them in foul trouble. They are averaging only 13 fouls per game so if we can get their posts in trouble early we may be able to seal the deal and get ready for Sunday.

No looking ahead to Sunday. (I can do that, I am not playing tonight)

The only options for tonight are GameTracker and WMUC Radio.

Maryland Game Notes

Final Score: Terps 86, Eagles 72

FullCourt.Com's ACC Positional Rankings

Rob Clough, who's part of the scout.com network, listed his ACC position-by-position rankings. If you have a Scout account and want to read the story go Here

I was able to get some of the text from the Duke board and as you can see below: Crystal is the #1 post, Marissa #3 at the wing and Shay #3 guard. Harper and Newman were on the also considered list.

Post:

1. Crystal Langhorne, Maryland (15 ppg, 8.9 rpg, 66% FG)
2. Erlana Larkins, UNC (10.1 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 66% FG, 2.6 spg, 1 bpg)
3. Mistie Williams, Duke (11.6 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 62% FG, 82% FT)
4. Tiffany Stansbury, N.C. State (15 ppg, 7 rpg, 59% FG, 1.9 bpg)
5. Brooke Queenan, BC (13.2 ppg, 9.3 rpg, 53% FG)


Wing:

1. Tamara James, Miami (20.8 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 56% FG, 85% FT, 46% 3FG, 3.1 spg)
2. Monique Currie, Duke (14.3 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 2.6 apg, 50% FG, 53% 3FG)
3. Marissa Coleman, Maryland (17.2 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 3.3 apg, 63% FG, 62% 3FG)
4. La'Tangela Atkinson, UNC (9.4 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 3 apg, 54% FG)
5. Billie McDowell, N.C. State (11.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 3.1 apg, 44% 3FG)


Guard:

1. Ivory Latta, UNC (16.9 ppg, 53% FG, 52% 3FG, 6.3 apg, 2.1 spg)
2. Lindsey Harding, Duke (10.8 ppg, 59% FG, 90% 3FG, 3.2 rpg, 4.6 apg)
3. Shay Doron, Maryland (15.4 ppg, 5.9 apg, 3.5 rpg, 2.1 spg, 42% 3FG)
4. Cotelia Bond-Young, Wake Forest (18.3 ppg, 35% 3FG, 4.7 apg, 4 rpg, 2 spg)
5. Abby Waner, Duke (12.2 ppg, 52% FG, 42% 3FG, 3.2 rpg, 4.2 apg, 2.8 spg)

Terps Article in Boston Globe

Great article in yesterday's Boston Globe regarding the Terps and how quickly they have grown into a powerhouse.

Maryland Rebuilding Job Is Far Ahead of Schedule

Under The Shell Debuts Tonight!!!

Looks like our favorite reality show kicks off tonight at 11 p.m. at Comcast SportsNet. If you don't have time to watch it or will be busy watching USC-Texas go to the official site of Under Shell and check out episode #1. I have seen the opening and a few clips and it looks great. Looking forward to another year of seeing what goes on behind the scenes and learning about the young ladies that make us proud.

Under The Shell Official Website

New Polls Come Out Terps Still 6th

One interesting point to notice in the AP Poll is that we somehow lost 5 points despite three solid wins last week.

Next week the polls should change and I hope it means we are moving up.

If you want a good laugh check out this post on RebKell's board: http://boards.rebkell.net/viewtopic.php?t=10130. According to this pilight person, we are a #7 seed while NC State and Va. Tech are 2 and 4, respectively.

Terp Related Items

Coleman Named ACC Rookie of the Week for the third time.

Terps Launch Under The Shell Website.

Future Terp DeMauria Liles was named to the Bojangles Shootout All-Tournament Team on Saturday. Earlier this year she was MVP of the Kreul Classic in Florida.

Our other future Terp Emery Wallace is still rehabbing a torn ACL.

Terps Win 9th Straight, Improve to 13-1

Missed another home game so I was forced to watch the game via the Gametracker and the video. Was very worried in the first half with a lot of easy misses and a score a lot closer than I anticipated. The second half was more to my liking as we won 82-49 and put five players in double figures. This ends our string of playing patsies for a while, although I hope we keep beating teams by 20+ points (Namely the Blue Devils on Sunday).

Game Story | Box Score | Quotes | Notes

Positives

We didn't let a poor first half get us down.

The return of Kristi Toliver. She struggled with her shot, but made some great passes and played 15 minutes. She can help spell Shay on Thursday until she gets back to full strength.

Held another opponent under 50 points.

Free Throw Shooting. When the shots aren't falling, the free throws better or we are in for a long night.

Negatives

19 Turnovers. I am just hoping for one game under 10 at this point.

Articles

Washington Post

Baltimore Sun

Pictures

Game #14: vs. Manhattan

Sorry about the lack of a recap for the Furman game, but I was busy with holiday/family functions so I was stuck going off the boxscore and articles. As I am sure you all read, we won big again. Crystal and Marissa were all Terrapin Classic and Shay was MVP. Turnovers look like they were down and we limited their scoring in the first half again. Everyone got at least one point, which is good and let us rest some players before this week.

Hopefully, today is another "rest" game as we play Manhattan at 7 p.m. Manhattan is undersized, which should result in another big block game as well as Crystal having her way with them.

I see us winning by between 30 and 40.

Maryland Game Notes

Mid-Season Report