Maryland women?s basketball coach Brenda Frese knows she has to remain aggressive if she wants to guide her team back to the Final Four. Sometimes, that means taking some chances. Arguably none was bigger than the one she took Sunday in the Terps? NCAA first-round win against Harvard when Frese replaced sophomore point guard Kristi Toliver with junior Sa?de Wiley-Gatewood in the starting lineup.
Frese said she would likely use the same lineup today when Maryland faces Mississippi at 7 p.m. in the second round at the Hartford Civic Center in Hartford, Conn.
“If you look at our play [Sunday], I thought Sa?de Wiley-Gatewood brought great tempo and energy to our transition game, which was followed up by Kristi in terms of what we wanted to get done,” Frese said during Sunday?s post-game press conference. “In my mind, I?ve always felt like we?ve had more than five starters anyway with the talent that we have. The move felt great to us in terms of the momentum of our team and where we are going.”
Toliver ? who gained national acclaim last season by hitting a three-pointer to send the national title game against Duke into overtime, where Maryland eventually won it ? took the benching in stride. Against Harvard, she scored 13 points and added nine assists.
She hopes to do more of the same as Maryland (28-5) looks to beat Mississippi (22-10) for the second time this season. The Rebels, who lost to the Terps, 110-79, on Nov. 25, advanced to the second round with an 88-74 win over Texas Christian.
“It was different,” Toliver said after Sunday?s game of her new reserve role. “Obviously, I haven?t done it since I?ve been here, but I am willing to accept any role that I am given. For me, I am just trying to play for my teammates, get wins and do whatever I have to do. I am the same person. I am the same player as before, but I am just coming [into the game] four minutes later.”
Despite the easy win against Ole Miss in November, the Terps are expecting a much tighter game.
“I think that it gives us some confidence, but we know that we played them a long time ago,” junior forward Crystal Langhorne said. “Ole Miss is a very different team. They are a lot better and we just need to be prepared.”
MARYLAND-MISSISSIPPI NOTES
» Tonight?s game tips off at 7 and will be televised on ESPN2.
» Armintie Price leads Mississippi in scoring at 18.2 points a game. She also averages nine rebounds and shoots 58 percent from the field for the Rebels.
» Ashley Awkward is the Rebels? second-leading scorer (12.2 ppg), while Alliesha Easley is third (11.1).
» Kristi Toliver started 49 straight games for Maryland before coming off the bench Sunday. She is averaging 11.9 points and 4.8 assists through 33 games played. Sa?de Wiley-Gatewood is averaging 6.6 points and 2.5 assists through 21 games.
