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MINNEAPOLIS – No. 8 seed Maryland advanced to the Big Ten Tournament Semifinals after stunning No. 1 seed and No. 4 nationally-ranked Ohio State, 82-61, on Friday at Target Center. It was the Terps' first win over a Top-5 ranked team since beating No. 4 Louisville, 76-73, on April 1, 2014 in the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight. The Terps will play in the semifinals for the ninth time in its 10 seasons in the Big Ten.
Maryland (19-12) is the lowest-seeded team to advance to the Big Ten Semifinals since Illinois in 2011. The Terps will play the winner of No. 4 seed Michigan State and No. 5 seed Nebraska on Saturday at 2 pm ET.
First Team All-Big Ten awardee Shyanne Sellers scored a game-high 25 points and added seven assists and eight rebounds. It was her eighth game of the season where she scored more than 20 points.
All-Big Ten Second Team honoree Jakia Brown-Turner posted 19 points and nine rebounds. Graduate Brinae Alexander drilled five three-pointers to give her 19 points on the day as well.
Senior Faith Masonius had a tremendous performance as she notched her fourth career double-double and first this season with a season-high 15 points and 11 rebounds. She also added four assists and shot 7-of-8 from the floor.
The Terps boasted a significant advantage in the rebounding department as they outrebounded the Buckeyes 55-31, including 21-10 on the offensive glass that contributed to 19 second-chance points. The Terrapins led 38-30 at halftime and remained in control the rest of the way.
The Terrapins' dominant performance extended to their defense. Ohio State (25-5) was held 19.4 points under its season average and its leading scorer Jacy Sheldon was limited to 10 points.
The Terps avenged their two regular-season losses to the Buckeyes with their win on Friday.
Coach Frese's Take
"I just loved our intensity and energy from the tip. I thought we weathered foul trouble, and our fifth years, Jakia, Faith, and Nae, 53 points combined were huge. Shy has battled injuries and has been tough all year. So proud to be able to get this win against Ohio State with her. All these guys have been to an Elite Eight, so you talk about being on the biggest stage and knowing they weren't going to be denied this time of year. Rebounding was huge. That was an area for us to go on the glass and be plus 24. Just really proud of this team. We've battled so much adversity this season -- injuries, one of the toughest schedules in the country. We played so many top 25 teams, top 10 teams, and have battled them all. So to finally get over that hump today when it matters most in the most time of pressure is a testament to these guys."
From The Girls
I feel like we're just peaking at the right time," said Shyanne Sellers. "That's what I said. I said to Coach all year, especially the second half, I feel like we're right there from flipping the switch and making those turns. Our Iowa game, our Ohio State game have all been super close, we just haven't gotten over that hump. Now we've gotten over the hump, I feel like we're going to keep going and not look back."
"It is hard to beat a team three times, and I think we wanted to come out here and just play to the best of our ability," said Faith Masonius on Maryland's game preparation. "Coach B's been telling us the only team that can beat us is ourselves. Even before we left, Shy looked at me, and she was like, just be on the glass tonight. I took that to heart and just got in there."
Breaking Down The Action
- Maryland trailed 11-10 at the first-quarter media timeout. However, the Terps got off to a hot start by jumping out to an 8-3 early lead.
- Ohio State sparked a 13-2 run over three minutes to flip the script. It led 17-12 at the end of the quarter. Still, the Buckeyes missed their last five shots from the floor as the Terps were in striking distance.
- Brinae Alexander drilled a three-pointer to take the lead back, 21-19 at 6:27 in the second quarter. Jakia Brown-Turner drained a three two minutes earlier and she led all Terps with eight points at the media timeout.
- The Terrapins facilitated a 13-2 run as Alexander knocked down another three-pointer and Faith Masonius scored a second-chance layup after she grabbed the rebound. Maryland led 28-21 at 3:53.
- Maryland led 38-30 at halftime after Shyanne Sellers connected on a floater as the buzzer sounded. Masonius was well on her way to recording a double-double and Alexander knocked down three threes in the quarter alone.
- The Terps remained ahead 46-39 at the third-quarter media timeout. Sellers scored a layup and joined the double-digit scoring group. The Buckeyes were then called for an offensive foul on the other end, leading to a three-point play by Brown-Turner.
- Alexander connected on her fourth three of the game to take a 59-44 lead with two minutes remaining in the stanza. The Terps were firing on all cylinders and made six of their last seven from the floor and were on a 17-5 run. The Maryland lead extended to 19 points.
- Sellers was unstoppable as she scored more than 20 points early in the fourth. The Terps held a glaring advantage in the rebounding department and were minutes away from securing the win.
Double-Figure Factors
- Shyanne Sellers scored 25 points and has scored double-figures in 24 of 30 games she has played this season. It was also the 65th in her career scoring in double-figures. It was her eighth time this season and 12 times in her career scoring more than 20.
- Jakia Brown-Turner hit the double-figures mark for the 23rd time this season, her first with the Terps, scoring 19 points. Overall, she has 90 double-figure scoring games in her career with 67 coming at NC State. Brown-Turner has scored in double-figures in each of her last 16 games.
- Brinae Alexander netted 19 points for her 13th game this season in double-digits. She scored in double-figures for the 68th time in her career.
- Faith Masonius recorded 15 points for her fifth double-figure game this season and 26th in her career as a Terp.
All-Big Ten Honors
- The Terps had four players earn Big Ten honors for the 2023-24 season.
- Junior Shyanne Sellers was named to the All-Big Ten First Team by the league's head coaches and media.
- Graduate Jakia Brown-Turner was named to the Second Team (coaches) and First Team (media) and
- Sophomore Bri McDaniel earned Honorable Mention honors from both groups.
- Freshman Riley Nelson earned a Big Ten Sportsmanship Award.
Records & Milestones
- Maryland has four 1,000-point scorers on its roster. (Brown-Turner - 1,692; Alexander - 1,443; Briggs - 1,396; Sellers - 1,197).
- With five three-pointers in the game, Alexander has made 145 in her two years as a Terrapin which is No. 11 in program history. She passed Laurin Mincy (2011-15) who made 143 in her career.
- Sellers is the No. 33 all-time scorer in Maryland's program history with 1,197 points. She scored 25 today and passed Debbie Lytle (1980-83), who has 1,189.
- Sellers moved up the all-time assists list and sits tied at No. 15 with 383 in her career, tying Lisa Brown (383). She passed Tiffany Brown (381).
Big Ten Tournament History
- Maryland is 22-4 all-time in the Big Ten Tournament. The Terrapins won the 2015, 2016, 2017, 2020 and 2021 Big Ten Tournament titles.
- Head coach Brenda Frese is 22-5 in the Big Ten Tournament, including her one season at Minnesota (2001-02). She has the highest winning percentage of any coach in Big Ten Tournament history.
- With the win over Ohio State, Maryland advanced to the Big Ten Semifinals for the ninth time in its 10 seasons in the Big Ten.
Numbers To Know
- 1: Maryland won its first game against a Top-5 team since beating No. 4 Louisville on April 1, 2014.
- 1: Faith Masonius notched her first double-double this season and fourth of her career.
- 7: Maryland has a strength of schedule of No. 7 in the country according to WarrenNolan.com.
- 8: Entering the matchup, the Terps were No. 8 in the country and led the Big Ten in free throws made per game.
- 9: The Terps advanced to the Big Ten Semifinals for the ninth time in 10 seasons.
- 11: Jakia Brown-Turner notched the 11th double-double of her career and seventh this season.
- 12: Shyanne Sellers scored more than 20 points in a game for the 12 time in her career and eight this season.
- 16: Brown-Turner scored in double-figures for the 16th game in a row.
- 24: Maryland outrebounded Ohio State by a +24 margin.
- 21: Maryland is 22-4 all-time in the Big Ten Tournament.
- 93: The Terps are 93-7 when they score 80 points or more over the last six seasons.
Up Next
- Maryland will play the winner of No. 4 seed Michigan State vs. No. 5 seed Nebraska in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament tomorrow, March 10. Tip-off is set for 2 pm ET and the game will be televised on Big Ten Network.
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