In a back-and-forth game, Maryland women's basketball found themselves back in the win column Monday evening against the Michigan Wolverines with an 85-77 victory.
The win also moved Maryland to 20-6 (10-5) on the season, securing head coach Brenda Frese's 20th 20-win season in her 23rd season with the program.
Maryland got the night’s first points with a layup from forward Christina Dalce, followed by a free throw from guard Kaylene Smikle. But Michigan didn’t take long to respond. The Wolverines became dominant on both sides of the ball. At the end of the first quarter, Michigan was up over the Terps 22-15.
Down seven points, The Terps needed to turn things around and fast. Maryland cut down its deficit to only two points after a strong offensive run by the Terps. Guard Sarah Te-Biasu got the first three-pointer of the night for the Terps, followed by Saylor Poffenbarger drilling the ball in for three.
With the Terps entering the half down 40-38, they just needed to continue their run from the second quarter and push that momentum into the second half. And they did just that.
After last week’s tough home loss against Nebraska, head coach Brenda Frese stressed that the Terps needed to become more aggressive, increase their effort levels, and ensure that everything was done intentionally.
“Rebounding for us is where it starts at. You know, transition just, for us, sprinting, getting out. I think you saw was a little more intentional to go to the bench and just not going to watch us relax on plays anymore or take possessions off,” Frese said.
Frese said these last two days in practice, “the effort level, that’s how hard you have to play all the time.”
The third and fourth quarters were a repeat of the second quarter. Dalce opened the third quarter with a layup. As the game continued, the passes became crisper, and the defense grew stronger. At the end of the third, the Terps were on top of the Wolviverners, 60-59.
With under 30 seconds left in the game, Sellers goes down, landing on her right knee, and is forced to exit the game. This is the same knee where she sustained an injury earlier in the season. With March just around the corner, this is not what Terp fans want to see.
Sellers ended her night with 18 points, but it ended with accolades after she became the first player in program history to record 1,500 points, 500 rebounds, and 500 assists.
“It doesn’t get done without great teammates, great coaching staff. So, you know, I’m grateful to be in the position that I am,” Sellers said. But even this impressive accomplishment still means nothing to Sellers. “Our goal is to win and make it far in the tournament and win Big Tens. So I think that’s the main focus. Everything else comes second,” Sellers said.
It wasn't without a scare after a Michigan intentional foul ended Sellers' night after injuring the same leg as earlier in the season. "I just fell right on it," Sellers said postgame. "I'm getting old so I can't keep falling. I'll be alright."
However, Sellers wasn’t the only Terp with an impressive finish. Te-Biasu scored 21 points against the Wolviners, and Poffenbarger scored 12 on the night.
With a successful second half, Poffenbarger said the adjustments had to come from within. “We obviously came out kind of on our heels, and I think, you know, we had to put pressure back onto them. And I think obviously make adjustments in the game, but I think a lot of those were kind of our own mistakes,” Poffenbarger said.
The Terps shot 33.3% from the three and 77.3% on free throws.
This was Maryland’s 16th all-time matchup against Michigan, and the Terps are still leading the series 12-4. The last time these two teams met, the Wolverines defeated the Terps in overtime in Ann Arbor, 79-77. In her 23 seasons at Maryland, this game marked Frese’s 20th 20-win season.
The Terps will now look to take this win and roll with it as they hit the road this week to take on Northwestern on Thursday, Feb. 20. Tip-off begins at 7:30 p.m. and can be streamed on the Big Ten Network.
By: Brinkley Smith
Related Links
Follow us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
Follow us on Instagram
Follow us on YouTube