No. 7 Maryland women’s basketball falls for the first time this season in 73-70 loss vs Illinois

Photo by Allie Mize/Maryland Terrapins. Photo courtesy of Maryland Athletics.

With 8.8 seconds remaining, No. 7 Maryland women’s basketball’s unbeaten season was in jeopardy.

Maryland found itself down by three but had a chance to tie as Yarden Garzon swung a pass to Saylor Poffenbarger. The redshirt senior’s shot fake left her defender in the air, giving her a chance to shoot an uncontested 3-point shot. 

But her shot clanked off the rim as time expired, resulting in a 73-70 loss to Illinois on Thursday at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Ill.

Maryland’s (14-1, 2-1 Big Ten) offense entered the contest on a torrid pace, scoring at least 91 points in each of its past six games.

But in the first half, the Terps’ offense was limited by its turnovers. Maryland had committed double-digit turnovers in 12 of its 14 games this season, and the issue prevailed again against Illinois (13-1, 3-0 Big Ten). The Terps committed eight first-half turnovers and finished the game with 12.

“There were a lot of turnovers, that were a lack of focus and understanding and then some lineups that were different given the foul trouble we were in,” head coach Brenda Frese said.

The Terps also found themselves in early foul trouble, as guards Addi Mack and Kyndal Walker combined for five fouls, forcing Maryland to use a point-guard-by-committee approach. 

“We knew that this is a team that takes a lot of charges,” Frese said. “I think it was disappointing in terms of how many we actually had.”

With Walker and Mack both in foul trouble, Garzon, Poffenbarger and junior guard Oluchi Okananwa did most of the ball handling. Garzon and Okananwa spearheaded Maryland’s offense, combining for 21 first-half points.

The Terps offense also routinely utilized its size advantage, securing 20 of its 39 points in the paint.

Defensively, the Terps employed a full-court press defense at times, converting five turnovers into five points. When the Terps didn’t force a turnover, it frequently produced stops, forcing the Illini into low-percentage looks.

But in the second half, Illinois came out of halftime strong. The Fighting Ilini attacked the Terps’ zone for easy looks at the rim and made six of their first nine shots from the field, taking their first lead of the game early in the third quarter. 

Maryland struggled to shoot from three in the first half, converting just one attempt. In the second half, its woes persisted, shooting 0-for-5 from 3-point range. The Terps finished the game shooting just 1-for-12, whereas the Fighting Illini shot 5-for-14.

Compounding on Maryland’s problems was Mack staying in foul trouble, picking up her fourth foul with 4:39 remaining in the third quarter. 

The freshman had been a vital component of Maryland’s attack this season, averaging 12.2 points and nearly three assists per game. But on Thursday, Mack tied a season low of 14 minutes as a result of her fouls. The only other game in which Mack played 14 minutes was a 95-38 win over Hofstra.

Despite Mack’s foul troubles and Maryland’s struggles from three, the Terps still had opportunities to even the score. But an illegal screen and a Poffenbarger missed 3-pointer on Maryland’s final two possessions sealed the game.