WBB: No. 2-Seeded Terps Headed Back To Sweet 16 After 77-64 Win Over Arizona

[TSR ScottGreene]

COLLEGE PARK, MD - Maryland is headed back to the Sweet 16 for the 20th time in school history after the the second-seeded and seventh-ranked Terrapins beat Arizona, 77-64 on Sunday evening at the XFINITY Center.

The Terps (27-6 overall) will take on No. 3 seeded and No. 10-ranked Notre Dame (27-5) on Saturday, March 25 in Greenville, South Carolina in the Sweet 16. Ticket, gametime and television information will be announced shortly. Maryland beat the Irish, 74-72, in South Bend earlier this season on Dec. 1, 2022.

This the 11th Sweet 16 appearance for the Terps under Brenda Frese and third in a row.

Four Terps scored in double-figures led by Diamond Miller who scored 20 of her 24 points in the second half, including 13 in the third quarter. Miller had six rebounds and a career-high tying seven assists.

Shyanne Sellers had another all-around game with 15 points, five assists and five rebounds.

Faith Masonius tallied 12 points as she continued her clutch play in the NCAA Tournament. Brinae Alexander also scored 12 points.

After jumping out to a 12-2 lead, Arizona outscored Maryland 25-15 in the second quarter to lead 33-32 at halftime. But the Terps took control in the third quarter, scoring the first nine points of the period to regain a commanding lead and never trailed again. Maryland outscored Arizona, 29-9 in the decisive third quarter, making 11-of-14 shots in the stanza – for the Terps' best shooting quarter this entire season (78.6 percent). The Terps' defense limited Arizona to just 3-of-15 from the floor over the 10 minutes.

Maryland tallied 20 assists on 36 made field goals.

Arizona finishes its season at 22-10 overall. Cate Reese led the Wildcats in scoring with 19 points.


Breaking Down The Action

• Capped off by a runout in transition where Sellers hit Miller perfectly in stride for an easy lay-up, Maryland scored the first six points of the game and forced Arizona to burn a timeout early.
• Maryland led 17-8 at the end of the first quarter thanks to suffocating defense, forcing the Wildcats into seven turnovers and just 3-of-13 shooting in the first 10 minutes of play. The Terps scored the last five points of the frame, capped off by a triple from Alexander.
• The Wildcats used a 7-0 run late in the second quarter to take a 33-32 lead into halftime. Faith Masonius and Brinae Alexander each scored eight in the period to lead the way for the Terps. Arizona shot 12-of-19 for 63 percent in the second quarter as the Wildcats outscored Maryland 26-6 in the paint in the first half.
• A five-point possession from Diamond Miller early in the third quarter put Maryland up 39-33.
• The Terps had their highest scoring quarter of the day in the third, exploding for 29 points to make it a 61-42 game heading into the final 10 minutes of action. Miller scored 13 points in the frame, making all six of her shots from the floor.
• The Terps continued to roll throughout the fourth, successfully handling Arizona's uptick in defensive pressure

Elite Sweet Sixteen Company

• The Terps become the first of eight teams this season looking to reach the Sweet 16 for the last three consecutive years (2021, 2022, 2023). Connecticut, Indiana, Louisville, Michigan, South Carolina, Stanford, and Texas are the other teams looking to do so as well.

NCAA Tournament History

• This is the Terps' 13th straight NCAA Tournament appearance, dating back to 2010, and 18th in head coach Brenda Frese's 21 seasons at Maryland (with the 2020 NCAA Tournament was canceled). Maryland is 52-28 (.650) all-time in the NCAA Tournament and 40-16 (.714) under Frese.
• Maryland is now 15-10 (.600) all-time in the NCAA Second Round. The Terps will be making their 11th Sweet 16 appearance under Frese including the third consecutive trip.
• Maryland is now 27-5 all-time in NCAA Tournament games in College Park and 21-4 in NCAA Tourney games at the XFINITY Center.
• Maryland improves to 19-8 all-time as a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament - the 19 wins are its most at any seeding (next is 12-4 as a No. 1 seed).
• The Terrapins have earned a top-four seed 22 times in their 30 NCAA Tournament appearances and 15 times in head coach Frese's 21 postseasons.
• Maryland improves to 4-0 all-time against Arizona, Frese's alma mater, with this being the first meeting between the two programs since the 2006 season. This was the first meeting between the two teams in the NCAA Tournament.

Terps Beating Ranked Foes

• With the win over 25th-ranked Arizona, the Terps are now 8-4 vs. ranked teams with wins over No. 6 Iowa, No. 6 UConn, at No. 7 Notre Dame, No. 10 Ohio State, No. 13 Michigan, No. 16 Ohio State and at No. 17 Baylor.
• The last time the Terps had eight or more Top-25 wins in a season was in 2014-15 with an 11-2 record on the way to the Final Four.
• Since Brenda Frese took over in 2002-03, Maryland now has 93 wins over Associated Press top 25 teams, including 11 in the 2014-15 season, which set a new school record.
• Under Frese, Maryland also has 29 wins over AP Top 10 teams, with four this season.
• The Terrapins are now 93-74 against ranked teams over the last 20 years, all under Frese. Twenty-seven of those wins were on the road and 21 were at neutral sites.

 

[TSR ScottGreene]

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