MINNEAPOLIS — Brenda Frese has preached it for years to anyone willing to listen. Her Maryland women’s basketball team has played top-tier opponents early in the nonconference season with an eye on March, hoping those early challenges prove beneficial when the games matter most.
Maryland was punished in November losses to South Carolina and Connecticut, and after several more tests in the rugged Big Ten, the Terrapins finished the regular season 0-8 against ranked opponents. And while Maryland’s foe Thursday was not of that caliber, the lessons learned came in handy in the second round of the Big Ten tournament. The eighth-seeded Terps overcame an early 14-point deficit to beat ninth-seeded Illinois, 75-65, to advance to a quarterfinal Friday against top-seeded Ohio State.
It was the biggest deficit the Terps had overcome in a victory since 2019.
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“That type of schedule prepared us to never flinch, to be down 14 and to be able to come back and play the way we did today,” Frese said.
The Terps (18-12) have been on the NCAA tournament bubble for the past few weeks, and conventional wisdom suggested they needed at least one win at the Big Ten tournament to feel comfortable about receiving a bid. They went winless against the top teams in the conference — Ohio State, Iowa and Indiana — but are 6-0 against everybody else since the start of February. Maryland entered the conference tournament ranked fifth nationally in strength of schedule according to warrennolan.com, 29th in RPI by realtimerpi.com and 36th in the NCAA’s NET rating.
“This win shows we’re an NCAA tournament team,” Frese said. “We have wins over Syracuse, three wins over Illinois, win over Penn State. Six wins over top-55 teams with a top-seven strength of schedule and the toughest schedule in the Big Ten. It should matter who you are playing night in and night out.”
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The day couldn’t have started worse for Maryland. Illinois went on a 16-2 run in the first quarter and led 24-10 after the first 10 minutes. Maryland adjusted in the second quarter, switching to mostly man-to-man defense, and began to contest what had been open looks.
The comeback started on the defensive end, where the Terps turned turnovers into offense. The Illini’s lead was down to 37-35 at halftime, but a slow start to the third quarter saw the deficit grow to nine points before the Terps changed the game for good.
“We really had to lock in more defensively,” Maryland guard Brinae Alexander said. “In the first half, we really didn’t make them work hard for their shots. They had a lot of open looks. So I think we went in at half and made it a point to make them work for everything that they got.”
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Maryland finished the third quarter on a 16-2 run in which Shyanne Sellers (11 points, eight assists) and Jakia Brown-Turner (14 points, eight rebounds) took over. Bri McDaniel was the most steady Terp throughout the game, putting up her first career double-double with 20 points and a career-high 10 rebounds.
“Just being extra-aggressive,” McDaniel said. “[Frese] told me, she pulled up our last stats from the game with rebounding, and she told me I’ve got to get on the boards more for her. So just coming in and being the pest I am and going in and getting the rebound. So that’s really what it was today.”
The Illini shot just 31.4 percent in the second half, including 1 for 8 from beyond the arc. Makira Cook led Illinois with 17 points and eight assists, and Camille Hobby added 16 points and seven rebounds.
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“Obviously, we knew Maryland’s really good, so they’re going to make a run,” Illinois Coach Shauna Green said. “… Give Maryland credit. They executed. They made plays when they had to. We were still right in there. We just didn’t make plays when it came down to it and gave up too many offensive rebounds.”
Here’s what else to know about Maryland’s win:
X-factors
Alexander rediscovered her shooting touch when Maryland needed it, producing 12 points and three three-pointers. Allie Kubek came off the bench to score 13 points and grab six rebounds. Thursday was just the fourth time she has scored in double figures in the past 11 games, a stretch that included six games of five points or fewer.
With Maryland down to a seven-player rotation in the wake of three season-ending knee injuries, the production of Alexander and Kubek is crucial. Kubek’s ability to stretch the floor as a 6-foot-2 post player opens space by drawing the opponent’s big away from the basket.
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“I was not making any of my shots in the beginning, but I made two of my threes,” said Kubek, who missed a pair of early layups. “It’s definitely a confidence-booster, too, seeing that ball go in.”
Shine bright like a Diamond
Diamond Miller, the No. 2 pick in last year’s WNBA draft, attended the game and sat in the first row behind the Maryland bench to support her former team. She spent time with the group Wednesday and specifically with Sellers, who played her first game without a bulky knee brace since injuring it against Penn State on Jan. 28.
“We just had a trip down memory lane,” Sellers said. “It was good just to catch up and just see her. She gave me some words of wisdom. Our relationship is just so great that I’ll listen to anything that Diamond says. So, just trying to get my mind right for the game. She’s like a sister to me.”
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