An injury-reasoned move into the starting lineup is nothing new for Bri McDaniel

Three purple jerseys surrounded Maryland women’s basketball’s offense in a full court press early in the first half against Niagara last Wednesday. Bri McDaniel flared out in front of her defender and received the inbound pass from Emily Fisher.

McDaniel raced down the left baseline, crossing over to her right hand to beat her defender to half court. She whipped the ball back to her left hand behind her back and drove to the paint. 

McDaniel’s mindset was clear. The sophomore drew contact as she elevated off her right foot and released the ball onto the left side of the backboard, bouncing directly into the basket.

High-energy plays like the fast break against Niagara have been a staple of McDaniel’s play this season. The guard ranks fourth in scoring and third in steals on the team despite playing the seventh fewest minutes of any Terp.

“She’s extremely athletic,” coach Brenda Frese said. “She can get downhill, she can obviously guard for us the best player on the floor.”

McDaniel’s exuberant playstyle caught Frese’s eye while attending Kenwood Academy in Chicago. McDaniel was a four-year starter for the program, which reached the 20 win mark in each full season. Broncos’ coach Andre Lewis first met McDaniel while she was in fifth grade. He remembers the passion for the game she embodied at a young age.

Lewis said McDaniel, like many freshmen, possessed clear skills offensively but needed to develop her defensive skills in high school — she stepped to his challenge. McDaniel took it upon herself to guard rival St. Ignatius’ best player her junior year, refusing to matchup against anyone else. She finished with 18 points and two steals in a 64-39 victory.

“It was really her defense that was most impressive to me. The fact that she guarded the other team’s best player all over the floor relentlessly,” Lewis said. “… She took the challenge personally and she met the challenge and excelled.”

McDaniel consistently came to practice early to watch film and grasp a better understanding of the game plan. Lewis said she understood that in order to lead, she needed to be well-informed on the schemes as the team’s starting point guard. But that wasn’t always the plan.

McDaniel originally started as a wing in her freshman season at Kenwood for the first five games before the starting point guard fell with injury, thrusting McDaniel into the position. Lewis’ pitch to McDaniel to make the switch centered around her chance to go to a Power Five school in college —  her ability to be a decision maker would only enhance the opportunity to fulfill her goal.

McDaniel was similarly sent into a starting position this year. An injury to starting guard Lavender Briggs and strong performances off the bench propelled her into the unit in the eighth game after previously coming off the bench for the previous 41. 

“I keep the same energy which is like, I don’t want to get too low and be at a pace where it’s not helpful for the team,” McDaniel said. “[I’m] just coming in with the same intensity that I was coming in with coming off the bench.”

McDaniel has averaged 13.5 points per game through two games in the starting lineup, including a five-steal performance against Niagara. 

“Bri is like that head of the snake for us on defense,” forward Brinae Alexander said. “[We’re] just trying to be there for her and be along with her and to bring the team along with us so we can just have started off the defensive end right.

McDaniel suffered a brief injury scare against George Mason last Sunday, needing to be helped off the floor after a hard fall on her back. But the sophomore was a full participant at Saturday’s practice ahead of Maryland’s upcoming game against Northwestern on Sunday — the Terps’ Big Ten opener.