No. 8 Maryland resists second-half surge, beats No. 23 Iowa on the road

Photo courtesy of University of Maryland Athletics

Guard Bri McDaniel drove baseline and beat her defender. As she was going to make a move, the ball slipped out of her hands and flung into the basket, opening up a 20-point lead. That was the kind of game No. 8 Maryland women’s basketball was having early Sunday night against No. 23 Iowa.

At one point, the Terps held a 25-point advantage and looked primed to earn a statement win. Instead, Maryland staved off the Hawkeyes’ second-half resurgence to secure its third ranked win, 74-66, at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

“Really impressed with this group’s poise and composure to withstand Iowa’s run, to get a really good road win in a really tough environment,” head coach Brenda Frese said. “I thought this group just found different ways to win.”

Stellar production from downtown helped fuel the Terps’ advantage early, going 5-10 in the opening quarter. And the barrage of three-pointers just kept coming, as Maryland hit a season-high 12 in its victory.

Iowa’s leading scorer Lucy Olsen started the scoring off with a jumper, but that was the only bucket Iowa would get in the first five minutes of the contest.

Conversely, the Terps’ offense was firing on all cylinders out of the gates. Kaylene Smikle quickly responded with a layup, before Saylor Poffenbarger and Shyanne Sellers knocked down back-to-back shots from behind the arc.

Smikle, Allie Kubek and Sellers each splashed triples in just a minute of game time to open up a 19-6 lead. McDaniel scored Maryland’s last quarter points with a transition bucket and extended its advantage to 14.

But then Iowa put together a strong stretch, closing out the first period with the last seven points. Freshman guards Teagan Mallegni and Aaliyah Guyton finished off easy layups, while junior guard Taylor McCabe nailed the Hawkeyes’ lone three-pointer in the opening 18 minutes.

The Terps kept their foot on the gas pedal in the second quarter, using a 20-3 run to extend their advantage to 24. Sellers, McDaniel and Smikle knocked down consecutive jumpers from behind the arc. 

Olsen hoped to ignite some confidence for Iowa with nine points in the final two minutes of the opening half, but it had no answers for Maryland’s red-hot offense.

Poffenbarger opened up the third quarter with the Terps’ 10th three-pointer of the game. The Hawkeyes had a big response, though, scoring 12 straight points to cut the deficit in half. Olsen kept up her strong performance with back-to-back jumpers during the run. 

“I think Iowa came out with punches in the second half,” Smikle said. “But we know how to play through that. We aren’t going to crumble from teams going on runs, because that’s just how basketball is.”

But the Terps held off any further push, ending the third quarter ahead 59-43.

Iowa’s mounting comeback in the second half continued, as Addison O’Grady and Olsen helped trim Maryland’s lead to 12. A 7-0 run from the Hawkeyes moved the score to 63-58, the closest the game had been since early in the first quarter.

The Terps looked to be in trouble and had their lead trimmed down to just two possessions. Instead, Smikle answered the bell, knocking down two crucial three-pointers to restore their double-digit advantage.

However, the Hawkeyes just wouldn’t go away. A costly inbounds turnover stolen away by Olsen gave Guyton an opportunity from downtown, and she converted. With 45 seconds left, Iowa had the lead back down to five.

But as it did all second half long, Maryland held on to its lead. Clutch free throws from Sellers and Smikle sealed the win.

“I think we built ourselves a great lead in the first half,” Sellers said. “Got to come out a little bit stronger in the third. But I think overall, we saw that we have grit even when we started losing momentum, kind of got it back in our favor.”

Smikle finished with a game-high 26 points off 8-of-17 shooting, while Sellers and McDaniel added 17 and 13 of their own.

The victory wasn’t just a huge resume booster for the Terps, but also a meaningful win for Frese, who grew up in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

“This is always a really special trip to be able to come home and connect with so many people that mean a lot to me,” Frese said. “Getting to see my family, my high school coach and friends really means a lot.”

Maryland has potentially their biggest matchup ahead, as they return home to face No. 4 USC on Jan. 8.