Jakia Brown-Turner got a steal in the backcourt early in the fourth quarter, and Maryland quickly had a three-on-one advantage. Brown-Turner finished off the layup, extending the Terps’ lead even further as the Nittany Lions struggled to stop Brenda Frese’s team after halftime.
Brown-Turner had a monster second half, scoring 28 of her 32 points in the final 30 minutes to power Maryland women’s basketball to a massive 77-62 home win over Penn State Sunday. The victory moved the Terps into sixth place in the Big Ten standings, one game back of Michigan State.
“It was more of a natural thing,” Brown-Turner said. “Just doing whatever it takes for us to win, whether it’s scoring, rebounding.”
Maryland (15-10, 7-7 Big Ten) honored its four seniors — Brown-Turner, Lavender Briggs, Brinae Alexander and Faith Masonius — pregame. The quartet all started for the Terps alongside Shyanne Sellers.
Former Terp and current Nittany Lion Ashley Owusu was honored as well alongside the rest of the Penn State (16-10, 7-8 Big Ten) seniors.
In Owusu’s first trip back to Xfinity Center she forced a turnover on Maryland’s first offensive possession. She then drove to the basket and scored the game’s first basket on a layup, making an impact immediately.
But the Terps quieted Owusu after that.
Owusu torched the Terps earlier this season in Penn State’s 112-76 rout of Maryland. She scored 16 points, dished seven assists and grabbed six rebounds in the January meeting.
But Maryland did a good job limiting Owusu throughout the game in the rematch. Owusu picked up four fouls — including two in the third quarter — to minimize her impact on Sunday. She rarely brought the ball up the floor and scored just seven points, only attempting six shots, and turned the ball over six times.
“I thought our defensive game plan on her was really good,” Frese said. “… It was huge to be able to limit her minutes on the court today.”
Penn State shot 61.5 percent from both the field and beyond the arc in the schools’ previous matchup this season. February’s rematch was a different story.
Maryland’s defense played much stiffer in the first quarter, as the Nittany Lions just shot 1-6 from beyond the arc in the opening period. The Terps’ strong defense continued in the next frame — Penn State shot just 35.7 percent from the field overall in the first half.
Even though both defenses settled in, Maryland found some gaps to close out the first quarter. It went on a 7-0 run to take a 19-13 lead 10 minutes in.
Then the Terps struggled in the second quarter, only making one field goal over the first six-and-a-half minutes of the period. But their excellent defense kept them close with the Nittany Lions.
Maryland forced six Penn State turnovers in the second period, and Sellers provided some breathing room with a jumper and a few free throws late in the frame. The Terps held a slim 28-26 halftime lead.
Makenna Marisa heated up to start the second half for the Nittany Lions, knocking down a pair of early third-quarter 3-pointers to give Penn State a 36-30 advantage. Then Maryland turned up the heat, drawing contact at will to reach the bonus with six minutes left in the period.
The Terps’ 12-0 spurt in the third quarter was powered by Sellers and Brown-Turner, who combined to score 20 of Maryland’s 25 points in the frame. The only other Terp to score in the third was Allie Kubek, who contributed five points off the bench. The Terps outscored the Nittany Lions by 11 in the third quarter, a stark difference from their third period woes from earlier in the season. The huge frame built Maryland a 53-40 lead.
“Jakia is very fast so when we get steals I already know she’s already on that block on the other side so it’s easy to pass her the ball,” Masonius said. “Her energy is contagious and everyone continues to feed off of it.”
Brown-Turner continued her strong third period into the fourth, adding 13 more points in a perfect 5-5 showing from the field to pace the Terps and seal Maryland’s victory.
