Preview: No. 8 Maryland women’s basketball looks to stay undefeated, facing William & Mary

Photo courtesy of Maryland Athletics

No. 8 Maryland women’s basketball (10-0, 1-0 Big Ten) has just one contest over three weeks, William & Mary (3-7). Thursday’s game against the Tribe will mark the second all-time matchup, with the Terps taking care of business, 85-52, in 1994.

Despite its perfect start, Maryland has looked vulnerable, especially in the opening 10 minutes of play. Outside of its 72-point blowout of Saint Francis, the Terps have outscored their opponents by a margin of 4.3 and averaged 18.3 points in the first quarter.

And this reigned true in their Big Ten season opener. Maryland fell into a 16-point deficit on the road against Purdue, scoring just six points in the first quarter. But then the offense got red hot, propelling the Terps to a 78-69 victory.

“We’re always ready for the test,” Bri McDaniel said. “Any little thing that we go through situational or just playing against each other, playing against scout [team] every day, we try to make sure we bring that intensity.”

Maryland’s play in the second period has kept it afloat, shrinking deficits or moving games out of reach. The Terps have a +96 second-quarter margin, putting up 22.3 points. 

Against Syracuse and Purdue, Maryland used a strong second-quarter display to seize momentum and help overcome its double-digit deficit. In the Terps’ seven games against non-Power 4 opponents, they have extended their lead by an average of 11 points.

McDaniel has been a spark plug off the bench, highlighting why head coach Brenda Frese believes she has seven starting-caliber players on the roster. McDaniel is the leader on defense, shutting down the opposing team’s best player. 

“Starting doesn’t matter to me, as long as I‘m making an impact in the game,” McDaniel said. “Doing the little things that my team needs me to do.”

Outside of McDaniel, Maryland has struggled on the defensive end, something the team has focused on over its 12-day hiatus from games.

“We’ve been really focusing on all areas that we feel like we need to improve,” Frese said. “I thought specifically defensively we’ve really made a lot of great strides.”

But the Terps have been a juggernaut offensively, scoring 84.1 points per game, 18th in the nation. Kaylene Smikle leads the team with 17.4 points, while Shyanne Sellers and Saylor Poffenbarger are averaging 11.7 and 10.4 points, respectively.

Poffenbarger’s emergence has been noteworthy. She earned a spot in the starting lineup and has four consecutive double-figure performances and three double-doubles in this stretch.

Christina Dalce, Allie Kubek and McDaniel round out the six players averaging at least nine points.

The only worrying sign on offense is the recent three-point shooting. Maryland has knocked down just 23.7% of their jumpers from behind the arc over the past four contests, an area that they once thrived in.

But the Terps’ production inside has taken over, scoring 196 paint points in these four games. Maryland has used its size and length to exploit mismatches down low. 

“When your three-point shot isn’t falling, I think you need to be even more tuned into being able to get easier looks until your shots start falling,” Frese said. 

Despite this, the Terps remain the fourth-most efficient team in the nation, shooting 50.4% from the field. When the Terps miss shots, they usually track down second-chance opportunities.

Poffenbarger and Dalce collect 8.8 and 8.2 boards a game, helping spring Maryland to the fourth-highest rebounding margin in the country. The team gathers 44.20 rebounds per contest, 14.9 of which have come on the offensive glass.

On the other side, William & Mary has struggled through its first ten games. The Tribe has three wins on the season: Chowan, McNeese State and South Carolina State. After starting with a 1-6 record, William & Mary has picked up two victories in its past three contests.

But offensively the Tribe have been subpar, shooting 34% from the field. William & Mary scores 55.5 points a game, a mark that ranks 322nd out of 353 teams. 

Guard Bella Nascimento — the team’s second-highest scorer last season — is the lone player in double-figures, notching 12.6 points. There is a big drop-off after that, as guard Cassidy Geddes is the next closest with 7.7 points a game.

Thursday’s contest is Field Trip Day, with over 15,000 local school children from over 80 local schools expected to be in attendance. Maryland will be looking to remain as one of the nine unbeaten teams left, four of which are in the Big Ten.

William & Mary will be the Terps’ last low-major opponent before conference play gets into full swing. Maryland has nine remaining games against ranked teams, including its final nonconference matchup against No. 6 Texas.

Tip-off is at 11 a.m. and will be streamed on Big Ten Plus.