Terps critical of officiating: ‘Fouls going one way’

GREENVILLE, S.C. — Maryland gamers Abby Meyers and Diamond Miller expressed their frustration with the officiating in Monday evening’s 86-75 loss to South Carolina within the Elite Eight.

Meyers fouled out early within the fourth quarter, whereas Miller was restricted within the first half with foul hassle. Maryland was referred to as for 26 private fouls, whereas South Carolina was referred to as for 12. After Miller acquired a query in her postgame information convention about coping with the bodily means the Gamecocks performed inside, she responded, “It is humorous the way you say that when all of the fouls have been going a technique, I felt like.”

Meyers then chimed in, “So we have been the extra bodily workforce, apparently.”

And Miller continued, “So we have been actually bodily, as a result of apparently they have been getting all of the foul calls. That simply exhibits we have now coronary heart, we have now grit, and simply because they’re taller does not imply we will not bang. If y’all did not see that we have been banging at the moment, I do not know what might present you that. Yeah, clearly we wanted to be extra bodily, I suppose, on the offensive aspect, as a result of each time they hit us, nothing was referred to as.”

Maryland coach Brenda Frese pointed to the second quarter because the turning level within the sport. The Terrapins led 21-15 following the primary quarter after deciding to set the tone with their tempo, however the foul hassle then set in. South Carolina went to the foul line 14 instances, making eight of these free throws. In the meantime, Miller and Shyanne Sellers spent practically the complete second quarter on the bench with two fouls every.

“You felt such as you have been teaching with one arm behind your again,” Frese mentioned of the second quarter. “Once they have been calling so a lot of them, you have been form of simply juggling who you had on the bench and forwards and backwards, and it form of felt like that every one sport. You are simply attempting to see who you possibly can maintain within the longest.

“However that second quarter was pricey, the quantity of free throws. We’re usually a workforce that will get to the free throw line 20, 25 instances. We solely acquired there 15 instances, and it was 5 after half. They acquired there 26 instances. Simply tough attempting to form of determine who you possibly can maintain in there that wasn’t going to get into foul hassle. We tried to combine up our defenses to maintain us out of it, however they have been capable of exploit it from each ends.”

South Carolina coach Daybreak Staley was not particularly requested in regards to the officiating, however she did be aware how bodily the sport was from the very starting and that it took time for the Gamecocks to regulate.

“Maryland got here on and performed extraordinarily quick, simply shifting the ball up and down the ground,” Staley mentioned. “They have been extraordinarily bodily, and I assumed it simply took us some time to essentially make changes to how they have been enjoying us. We mainly simply fought aggression with aggression, as a result of they have been actually aggressive. Over time, I simply thought our depth and our skill to go inside and our skill to use slightly strain [made] it slightly tough for them to straight-line drive us or simply to get wide-open perimeter pictures.”

When requested for her general frustration with the best way the sport was being referred to as, Frese was extra diplomatic.

“I do not pour into issues you possibly can’t repair or management,” Frese mentioned. “You possibly can solely management yourselves. I wasn’t going to spend any power in that course. A number of these fouls have been pricey off [offensive] board putbacks. They’ve large measurement that basically impacted us, and I assumed they took benefit. I feel it made us tentative as soon as Shy and Diamond have been form of held out in that second quarter with the remainder of the group.”

Miller expressed delight in the best way her workforce performed regardless of among the calls she felt went in opposition to them. She led all scorers with 24 factors, however each she and Sellers completed with 4 fouls. Religion Masonius additionally fouled out of the sport.

“On the finish of the day, I am unable to dwell on what the refs name,” Miller mentioned. “I am not going to say the refs misplaced us the sport. That is not what I am saying by any means. I imply, they outrebounded us, as we form of anticipated, let’s be sincere. However they outrebounded us, and so they acquired extra second-chance factors. And it was our second quarter. They beat us 23-9. 9 factors in a single quarter is hard to return again from.”