Duke is once again bedeviling Maryland.
No. 1 Duke (28-0, 13-0 ACC) defeated No. 6 Maryland (25-4, 9-4) 69-57 Sunday night at Comcast Center. The Blue Devils swept the Terrapins this season with a pair of double-digit victories. The rematch of last year’s national championship was once again decidedly lopsided.
“We lost to Duke twice last year [too],” Maryland coach Brenda Frese said. “We have to want to continue to improve and use this game to get better.”
Young girls greeted Shay Doron with roses by the court tunnel for the end of her local career. The throng was six deep. It was a bittersweet moment for the Terps, though. Their chance to become one of the postseason favorites was gone.
“In the big picture,” Doron said, “if we had to lose this game to win another one [in the postseason] I’ll take that.”
The Terps received a proper send-off in the regular-season home finale. Doron and Aurelie Noirez stood misty eyed at midcourt during the pregame “Senior Day” honors. The Terps’ second sellout, matching Maryland’s early ACC record crowd of 17,950 against North Carolina on Feb. 4, delivered another high-energyatmosphere. That is, until they started leaving with 3:16 remaining and Maryland trailing by 12 points.
“We still believe” noted one sign-waving fan.
There’s still good reason to believe Maryland can defend its national title despite finishing 0-3 versus No. 1 Duke and No. 2 North Carolina. The Terps are largely in the same position as last season, entering the ACC Tournament in third place.
The postseason is so close with Connecticut, Tennessee and Ohio State joining the ACC trio among top contenders. Maryland peaked in the tournament last season. They’re playing well entering the magic month again.
Duke is just a little better than Maryland so far this season. Guard Lindsay Harding may be the college player of the year, especially after converting 9 of 10 shots in the first half en route to career-best 29 points.
It didn’t help Maryland was sometimes flat footed on the defensive boards while failing to chase some loose balls. That wasn’t the difference, though. Duke was the superior team on this night, though not enough to scare Maryland into submission.
The Terps are a better team than last season. The problem is the Blue Devils are too.
“Once again, when you play big games like this you learn a lot about yourself,” said Duke coach Gail Goestenkors.
Maryland learned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament may await the Terps just like last season barring an ACC Tournament win in Greensboro, N.C. where the crowd is always heavily local. But so what? The postseason will come down to desire and the Terps proved last season that they’re relentless.
Rick Snider has covered local sports since 1978. Contact him at [email protected].
