No. 2-seed Maryland women’s basketball falls to No. 1-seed South Carolina, 86-75

In the pregame speech to her squad, coach Brenda Frese spoke about her unit’s heart and fight being the equalizer against South Carolina’s size. After the first quarter, it seemed as if the veteran coach had called her own shot, as Maryland women’s basketball led by six over South Carolina.

But then the Gamecocks took over.

Aliyah Boston grabbed rebound after rebound, Zia Cooke drove through the chests of defenders, Brea Beal made unexpected triples and the Gamecocks showcased the level of talent that led them to the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Over four quarters, South Carolina’s height proved to be too much for No. 2-seed Maryland’s heart, and coach Dawn Staley advanced to her third-straight Final Four, beating the Terps, 86-75.

South Carolina held a large size advantage over nearly every team this season, and that didn’t change on Monday. 

But it was the Terps who were the aggressors once the ball was tipped.

The story of the game early on was Maryland’s decision to run with tempo. Because South Carolina sent so many players to try and get offensive rebounds, it gave up transition baskets as a result.

Maryland got at least three wide-open layups due to playing fast, and despite senior guard Diamond Miller sitting for a majority of the first quarter, led 21-15.

The Gamecocks looked a little rattled after the first quarter, as the Terps outscored them in the paint. Going on a 12-0 run at one point, five different Terps scored in the first quarter.

But then South Carolina flexed its muscles. 

Opening up the second quarter on a 5-0 run, the Greenville crowd started to play a role in favor of the Gamecocks. 

The Terps started to foul more as well, South Carolina reached the free throw line 14 times in the second quarter. Key Terps started to rack up fouls, as four of Maryland’s five starters entered halftime with two fouls.

“Clearly you saw that when it impacted us with our foul trouble we didn’t have that kind of depth [as South Carolina],” Frese said.

Both Miller and sophomore guard Shayanne Sellers played sparingly in the first half, so Abby Meyers picked up the slack. The senior guard had scored 12 in the first half, making two threes to keep the Terps in the game. Still, the absence of Millers and Sellers led in part to a 14-5 Gamecocks run.

All in all, the second quarter was the South Carolina show as it pulled ahead 38-30 at the break. The Gamecocks are the best second quarter team in the country, and they showed that against the Terps.

“I thought the game was lost in the second quarter,” Frese said.

In the first half, it seemed as if the referees were going to allow for a physical style of game. But once the teams came out of the locker room, that seemed to change. Maryland picked up four fouls within the first five minutes of the third quarter, including two critical calls on Meyers that put her on the bench.

“Every time they hit us, nothing was called,” Miller said.

Not only did South Carolina begin to draw fouls, but it also began to dominate the Terps on the glass. The Gamecocks finished with a plus-22 margin on the glass, including 23 second chance points.

The two stars for the Gamecocks paced the way, as seniors Boston and Cooke finished the game with 22 and 18 points, respectively. 

The Terps tried to compete on the glass, but ultimately the South Carolina length and size overwhelmed them. Boston grabbed three offensive rebounds, while 6-foot-7 Kamilla Cardoso secured four.

“They’re big and I think that’s what our ultimate downfall was, just how big they were in the post,” Miller said.

What turned out to be Maryland’s last quarter of the season was symbolic of the game. 

Sellers and Miller fought to bring Maryland back in the game, but it was too little, too late, as South Carolina’s elite senior class advanced to its third-straight Final Four.

The Terps lost four starters and had their season end in the Elite Eight. One round later than last year’s squad.

“Nobody could have seen this team last season, when we had to rebuild it, go and do what they were to do this season,” Frese said.