Maryland women?s basketball coach Brenda Frese said the best part of not knowing which team the Terrapins will face in the NCAA Tournament is it allows her players to take a closer look at themselves.
Right now, Frese believes there is a lot for her players to examine after being upset by Duke, 74-63, in the semifinals of the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament this past Saturday in Greensboro, N.C.
Specifically, Frese wants to take this week to stress the importance of rebounding and defending aggressively, something she felt the Terrapins (30-3) didn?t do against the Blue Devils (23-9). Frese also said it?s imperative the Terrapins take better care of the ball after Duke scored 32 points off 19 turnovers.
“I definitely felt like some of our weaknesses got exposed against Duke,” Frese said. “We lacked the intensity we needed. Luckily for us, our season didn?t end Saturday and we have a chance to get refocused.”
Maryland likely will be a No. 2 seed when the NCAA Tournament field is announced Monday night. The Terrapins also are guaranteed to play the first two rounds in the friendly confines of the Comcast Center, where they went 19-0 this season.
As part of the promotion for the tournament games in College Park, ESPN spent Tuesday conducting interviews and a photo shoot with the Maryland players and coaches.
Terrapins senior forward Crystal Langhorne said that type of exposure is great, but won?t mean anything if Maryland can?t take care of business on the court by winning its second national title in three years.
“Right now, we have to take every practice and every game and treat it like its our last one,” Langhorne said. “We can?t hold anything back, even in our first-round game because if we let up, we could lose and saving that energy would have meant nothing.”
Junior guard Kristi Toliver, who along with Langhorne is among 17 finalists for the Wooden Award given to the nation?s top collegiate player, believes Maryland is more prepared for the NCAA Tournament compared to last season. Last spring, the second-seeded Terrapins were upset in the second round by seventh-seeded Mississippi, 89-78.
This season, Maryland went 8-3 against teams currently ranked in the top 25 and 12-3 against teams in the top 50 of the latest Ratings Percentage Index.
“We played soft against Duke and can?t let that happen again,” Toliver said. “Ultimately, the only one that can beat us is us. Now, we have to take this extra time and take care of the things we can take care of.”
