Making its return to the national stage for the first time since last spring?s NCAA finals, Maryland showed why they are still the top team in women?s college basketball.
Forward Crystal Langhorne scored 24 points and grabbed nine rebounds and Kristi Toliver dropped in 12 and had six assists as the Terps routed Michigan State, 97-57, in front of 12,295 fans Saturday at the Comcast Center on a game televised nationally on CBS.
Maryland (17-0) dominated Michigan State(12-3) in every facet of the game, including on the boards where the Terps held a 56-32 advantage. That came three days after N.C. State became the only team this season to out rebound the Terps.
“We talked about making a statement,” Maryland coach Brenda Frese said. “I thought it started with our defense with the intensity that we started the game with and really competing hard and challenged this team for 40 minutes.”
Frese called Saturday?s performance the team?s best of the season to date. It came against a Michigan State team which came into College Park leading the nation with 7.1 blocks per game and ranked ninth in field goal percentage defense at .323.
The Spartans allowed a season-high in points against the Terps after allowing just an average of 54.6 points per game prior to Saturday. Also, Maryland held 6-foot-9 freshman center Allysa DeHaan to four points, four rebounds and five blocks.
“I think that we were just excited to come out and play on national television for the first time,” Langhorne said. “We wanted to come out and play well because everybody judges a team by the first time they see them play. So, we just wanted to stay focused, come out and play hard.”
Maryland?s effort Saturday came at the same time as the Terps prepare for their first Atlantic Coast Conference road trip of the season. The Terps play at Miami Wednesday before visiting Duke Saturday in the much-anticipated rematch of last year?s national title game.
“The greatest thing about coaching this team is that we respect every opponent that we play,” Frese said. “We know Miami is going to be a really tough opponent; going down to their place, especially given that it?s our first road game in the ACC. Our focus right now is 100 percent about playing for 40 minutes against Miami.”
