No. 8 Maryland women’s basketball continues undefeated season with 78-61 win over Rutgers

Photo courtesy of Maryland Athletics

At times this season head coach Brenda Frese has wanted more from her team on the defensive end. And against Rutgers, No. 8 Maryland women’s basketball wreaked havoc on that side of the floor, holding the Scarlet Knights to just nine second-quarter points.

The Terps used their size and length all game, forcing Rutgers into highly contested jumpers and well below its season averages. They pressured the Scarlet Knights into a season-high 24 turnovers which led to 33 points the other way.

“I thought that [second quarter] was probably the most dialed-in we were,” Frese said. “Defensively, we really understood how to take things away. We were really aggressive on both ends of the floor and the [defense] led to our offensive end.”

After scraping by in its first two Big Ten contests, Maryland put together its best conference performance of the season, dismantling Rutgers, 78-61 at the Xfinity Center. 

Against her former team, Kaylene Smikle found success from the tip-off, nailing the Terps’ first jumper. But despite one of her worst shooting outputs of the season — scoring 13 points on 4-12 shooting — her presence was still impactful, racking up five steals and four boards.

“When she plays that hard on both ends of the floor and she anticipates really well, that’s the thing I love about her game,” Frese said. “On the defensive end, she understands and has a knack for where the ball is, it’s huge for us.”

Sarah Te-Biasu broke the backcourt press, finding Smikle wide-open on the wing. Without hesitation, she turned towards the basket and splashed the jumper from downtown.

And that sparked Maryland’s strong defensive effort. Outside of 14 points from Rutgers’ guard Kiyomi McMiller, the rest of the team mustered just eight points in the opening 20 minutes. But the Scarlet Knights (8-6) still hung around early in the contest.

The Terps (13-0) held a slight 8-7 advantage through five minutes of play before Bri McDaniel splashed two free throws and a three-pointer to extend the lead.

Then, Shyanne Sellers took over the contest, capping off an 11-3 run for Maryland. Sellers — the team’s leader with 5.6 assists — has created shots for others this season. But against Rutgers, she called her own number on multiple occasions.

Sellers was knocking down shots with ease in the paint, scoring six of her season-high 22 points in quick succession to open up a nine-point lead.

A deep buzzer-beating jumper from McMiller stopped the bleeding for the Scarlet Knights, moving the score to 19-13. And that carried over into the second quarter, as she proceeded to score the first three points.

But the Terps turned its defensive pressure back up, holding McMiller scoreless the rest of the way. 

“I think staying disciplined, she likes to do a lot of flashy stuff,” Sellers said. “We did a good job of playing team defense on her and making it difficult … forcing her into seven turnovers.”

While Rutgers was on a five-minute scoring drought, Maryland rattled off the next 11 points with a balanced attack. 

The Terps outscored the Scarlet Knights 21-9 in the second quarter and held an 18-point advantage at the break. Sellers continued her offensive explosion in the third quarter, scoring Maryland’s first four points. 

Allie Kubek had her most complete performance of the season, scoring 17 points off of 6-9 shooting from the field, multiple of which were set up by Sellers. Kubek was knocking down baskets from all over the court, including her sixth jumper of the season from behind the arc.

“She does a great job of finding me, I appreciate that about her,” Kubek said. “The time that we have spent for three years together has definitely impacted our connection on the court, and I’m just grateful for that.”

The duo scored 16 of the Terps’ 24 points in the third quarter and helped add insurance to their lead. 

And the beginning stages of the fourth quarter were more of the same. A three-pointer from Sellers opened up a 28-point lead, their largest advantage of the contest. Maryland pulled its starters and coasted the rest of the way to its biggest Big Ten margin of victory this season. 

Bri McDaniel and Mir McLean combined for 16 points off the bench, while McLean collected seven boards and three steals.

The Terps look to continue their best start since the 2011-12 season, as it travels to No. 23 Iowa on Sunday at 6 p.m.