Here’s what to know about Saturday’s game.
Maryland women’s basketball’s run in the Big Ten Tournament came to a close Saturday, as it fell to No. 5-seed Nebraska in the semifinals, 78-68.
Here are some takeaways from the game.
Nebraska dominated the perimeter
Heading into Saturday’s contest, Maryland surely had its eyes on center Alexis Markowski, who scored 20 points in the teams’ last meeting and 22 points in Nebraska’s quarterfinal win against Michigan State.
And while the Terps’ paint defense operated well against her, it also opened up ample opportunities on the perimeter. The Cornhuskers did not hesitate to cash in.
Nebraska’s three-point barrage began toward the end of the first quarter, when guard Jaz Shelley hit three consecutive shots from downtown, all of which went unanswered by Maryland. The Terps quickly found themselves down 13 points heading into the second frame. Shelley went 6-of-12 from three in the contest and had a season-high 30 points.
“[Shelley] was the X-factor that, as a fifth-year, determined this game ultimately,” said Maryland head coach Brenda Frese.
Throughout the first half, the two teams shot at an equal clip, which was the most confounding aspect of the game. The Terps made 16 shots on 59.3% shooting in the first 20 minutes, while Nebraska made 17 shots on 53.1% percent shooting. It was the Cornhuskers’ staggering 10-for-18 performance from three-point range that made the difference.
The Cornhuskers cooled off in the second half, going just 3-for-10 from beyond the arc. Still, the makes were important, as two came in the fourth quarter to help separate them from the then-struggling Terps.
“It’s a really hard matchup when you talk about their inside-outside presence, and once Jaz started, you know, really going off, I mean, the basket got bigger for everyone,” Frese said.
A substantial bench points disparity
Maryland used a seven-player rotation, typical for it of late. Four Terps played for over 30 minutes, with Faith Masonius and Shyanne Sellers playing 39. In comparison, 11 players saw the court for Nebraska.
On Saturday, the Cornhuskers’ bench outscored Maryland’s 29-11, making a massive difference in the contest. In the teams’ previous matchup back on Dec. 31, Maryland racked up a whopping 44 points off the bench compared to Nebraska’s 24 and scored 81 points total.
On Saturday, the ball wasn’t spread around between Maryland scorers, with Sellers and Jakia Brown-Turner combining for 29 of the Terps’ 57 field-goal attempts. They made just nine combined.
But it’s clear that Frese still has plenty of trust in her shortened bench.
“We have a locker room full of a lot of competitors that have fought and stuck through a lot of adversity this season,” Frese said. “And you see that they’re built for March.”
Fatigue got to Maryland
Both teams were playing their third game in as many days. But it was clear that Maryland was more affected by the strenuous nature of the Big Ten Tournament.
The tiredness was evident from the get-go, as the Terps went just 1-of-5 from the field in the first four minutes of play. Their looks were often forced, and they settled for too many contested midrange jumpers. Two starters, Brinae Alexander and Brown-Turner, failed to record a point in the first 10 minutes.
But the fatigue mostly reared its ugly head in the fourth quarter, as Maryland started getting sloppy with the ball. At one point, it turned the ball over five times in eight possessions.
It was also clear that it didn’t get its full legs under many of its shots. The Terps went just 3-of-14 from the floor and 1-of-8 from three in the fourth quarter, even air-balling one of them.
Rebounding was another issue, as Nebraska won the battle on the glass 10-8 in the final frame and came down with some timely offensive boards to help waste away the clock.