No. 9 Maryland women’s basketball added an extra shake to its lineup Thursday night. Kaylene Smikle made her season debut after missing the first three games.
Smikle led the Terps last season with an average of 17.9 points per game, but was sidelined to start the season with nagging injuries. His absence was notable, as Maryland lacked a primary scoring option.
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Smikle’s 13 points fueled the Terps’ strong start as they topped Towson, 88-70, at Xfinity Center.
“I’m someone who trusts the process. I’m not going to rush back,” Smikle said. “I’ve had good coaches and teammates who have given me confidence when I work out, helping me stay in the moment.”
Despite getting back one key contributor, the Terps lost another. Lea Bartelme went down with a left knee injury and was taken off the field; He didn’t come back. It will be evaluated in the coming days.
The Terps protected the rim with a high score Thursday, with six blocks in the first half. They were suffocating in the paint and made every shot difficult from all places on the court. Isimenme Ozzy-Momodu had eight blocks and Saylor Poffenbarger had two as the Terps finished with Seven on the night.
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“We’re just playing our defense,” Smikle said. “We practice every day with the same defense, we just know how to defend and we want to be a great defensive team, so we embrace that to create blocks.”
The Terps entered the game shooting 50% from the field on the season, but struggled to attempt a similar pace early Thursday. Maryland had a surplus of shooting opportunities, but couldn’t get shots off at point-blank range.
Maryland had an extremely strong defense early, allowing minimal spacing, but offensive struggles kept the Tigers competitive. Towson had a few scoring opportunities in the first quarter, but Maryland quickly pulled away later in the first half.
India Johnston and Thalia Shepard were Towson’s outliers against Maryland’s relentless defense, combining to score 43 of Towson’s 70 points on 17-of-25 shooting.
But the course of Maryland’s offense was corrected when Addi Mack took over. The Terps got hot down the stretch in the first half, shooting 11 of 15 from the field in the second quarter and making multiple runs to pull away.
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The Terps led throughout the game, but that strong second quarter essentially eliminated the Tigers’ chances heading into halftime. Maryland outscored Towson by 18 in the second frame, making all three of its 3-point attempts.
Yarden Garzón, who was a prolific three-point shooter at Indiana, had struggled to find his rhythm from distance to open the year. He found it Thursday, shooting 50% from both the field and deep.
Maryland continued its dominance on the forums. His size simply outclassed Towson, recording 21 more rebounds. Oluchi Okananwa led the Terps with eight rebounds. He emphasized that rebounding was part of his identity on Sunday and showed it with another strong performance on the glass on Thursday.
The Tigers got within 16 points in the second half, but the Terps were in complete control and finally took their foot off the gas. Towson outscored the Terps in both the third and fourth quarters.
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“Our focus and attention to detail could have been a lot better tonight,” head coach Brenda Frese said. “I thought we made a lot of unusual, undisciplined plays.”
Nicole Fritea also scored her first shot of the season – she was the last Terp to play this season to score her first career points. All 13 Maryland players who saw the court scored for the first time this season.
Three things you should know
1. The attack on Mack continues. Mack built on his breakout 23-point performance on Sunday, with 15 points and six assists against the Tigers. Mack took over most of the primary ball-handling duties after Bartelme went down and orchestrated the offense.
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“Addi continued to give us great production from a scoring standpoint,” Frese said.
2. Williams was a great standout player. Breanna Williams had the best performance of her young career off the bench, scoring 10 points. The Terps have been figuring out how to play their bigs: Williams had been an afterthought, but he showed off Thursday.
“I love that he’s posting hard for us inside,” Frese said. “She’s trying to give us that low post presence and be able to hit.”
3. Harper’s return. Towson head coach Laura Harper returned as coach against Maryland for the third time on Thursday. Harper’s No. 15 is honored in the rafters of the Xfinity Center as a member of the 2006 National Championship team; She was the Most Outstanding Player of the 2006 NCAA Tournament.
“Back to the Xfinity Center. It never gets old. It gives me chills every time I see the red, black and gold,” Harper said.