Religion Masonius paused briefly however didn’t take lengthy to reply the query. She stood on the Xfinity Middle flooring as a celebration passed off round her. Maryland had simply been introduced as a No. 2 seed within the NCAA event, and the watch get together was crammed with smiles and laughter.
Maryland
The Terps women have turned a transition year into a title opportunity
The scene was a bit troublesome to think about in August.
“Truthfully, I don’t know if I might have believed you,” mentioned Masonius, a senior. “As a result of with so many new women coming in at that time, you by no means know what it’s going to be like. We now have nice basketball gamers individually, however how is it going to be [with] us enjoying collectively as a group?
“So I’m simply actually excited that we’ve gotten so far. We’re enjoying nice basketball offensively, defensively and simply doing what we’ve acquired to do. We deserve that, too.”
Maryland misplaced its high two scorers and a high reserve to the switch portal in a single week in April. When the mud settled, the Terrapins had been with out 5 of their high six scorers. The headliners of the exodus had been Angel Reese, the highest-ranked recruit in program historical past, and Ashley Owusu. Reese was named an Related Press first group all-American in her first season at LSU.
The core of that Maryland group set offensive data for this system and was the best scoring group within the nation in 2020-21. The Terps entered 2021-22 as nationwide title contenders earlier than shedding within the Candy 16 for the second straight season and seeing the mass exodus.
These departures left Maryland ranked seventeenth to start out this season and picked to complete fourth within the Huge Ten.
“I had no thought what we had been going to be at the start of the season,” Maryland guard Abby Meyers mentioned. “9 new transfers, it was undoubtedly only a technique of constructing the group up. It’s nice to be a No. 2 seed. To us, it’s no shock. We’ve been underestimated, we’ve been the underdog the entire 12 months. However our report exhibits, our résumé exhibits, and we’re simply excited to get on the market and begin hooping.”
Meyers was essentially the most notable incoming switch of the offseason because the reigning Ivy League participant of the 12 months, and he or she earned second group all-Huge Ten honors after she averaged 14.5 factors. Brinae Alexander left Vanderbilt as its main scorer to turn out to be the highest scorer off the Maryland bench. Lavender Briggs led Florida in scoring in 2020-21 earlier than embracing an necessary bench function for the Terps. South Florida switch Elisa Pinzan began each recreation at level guard. Sophomore Shyanne Sellers elevated her scoring common from 7.7 factors to 13.8 and was named second group all-Huge Ten and to the convention’s all-defense group. Even freshman Bri McDaniel got here on late, turning into a valued contributor off the bench.
All of these gamers had robust résumés, however nobody knew how properly they would slot in a brand new system and the way shortly they might come collectively.
The Terps enter the event at No. 7 within the AP ballot, the second-biggest in-season enchancment for this system since Brenda Frese took over. The most important? Maryland started the 2005-06 season ranked 14th and went on to win the nationwide championship.
The Terps (25-6) open the NCAA event Friday afternoon in School Park with a first-round recreation towards No. 15 seed Holy Cross (24-8) within the Greenville (N.C.) 1 Area. A victory means the winner of No. 7 Arizona and No. 10 West Virginia in a second-round recreation Sunday.
“This group’s going to go down as a extremely particular group,” Frese mentioned. “Final 12 months, everyone knows, it was a tricky 12 months personally and professionally.
“It’s undoubtedly a group that it simply exhibits when you’ve the correct items and the correct chemistry, and I’ll say from our employees’s finish, after we had been one level with seven, eight gamers on the roster, it was fairly daunting within the spring. You may ask my husband and my household. Simply to see the correct items come collectively and the match after which to purchase into a complete new system is fairly unimaginable.”
One of many greatest challenges has been the schedule, which Frese put along with a unique roster in thoughts. There was a sense after a 2021 Candy 16 loss to Texas that these record-setting Terps weren’t correctly examined earlier than the postseason. The Huge Ten wasn’t as robust as it’s now and the 2020-21 nonconference slate featured simply two ranked groups — No. 24 Missouri State and No. 14 Arkansas.
Evaluate that with this season’s schedule that included No. 1 South Carolina, No. 17 Baylor, No. 7 Notre Dame and No. 6 Connecticut. There are 4 different Huge Ten groups ranked within the high 18, together with No. 2 Indiana and No. 3 Iowa, and Maryland performed every of them at the least as soon as. The Terrapins have seven wins over ranked opponents and 4 towards top-10 groups. Rankings web site WarrenNolan.com ranks them seventh in energy of schedule, and the Massey Scores gave them the No. 2 energy of schedule within the nation.
New personnel and a tricky schedule left Frese with the necessity to tweak some schematics. The Terps are identified for his or her offensive firepower however turned a extra balanced squad in 2022-23. The protection turned rather more versatile as Frese used a mess of zone and man-to-man appears. The total-court press turned a constant weapon, and Maryland pressured the fourth-most turnovers within the Huge Ten. Essentially the most spectacular second might have been a 96-68 February win over Iowa during which first-team all-American and Huge Ten participant of the 12 months Caitlin Clark was restricted to 5-for-13 capturing and first group all-Huge Ten heart Monika Czinano was held to 4 factors.
“All of the totally different coverages you had been seeing was such an ideal strategy to guarding Iowa that they hadn’t seen that,” Huge Ten Community analyst Meghan McKeown mentioned.
Former coach and present analyst Carolyn Peck added, “Bear in mind Maryland was all fuel, no brakes.”
As a lot of a shock because the common season has been, the NCAA event is the true measuring stick. The Terps superior to the Candy 16 the previous two seasons. Now they need extra — and to make a press release by a gaggle that has been collectively for lower than a 12 months.